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GLIMPSES 


OF 


OLD  NEW  ENGLAND  LIFE. 


LEGENDS  OE  OLD  BEDFORD. 


BY 

ABRAM  ENGLISH   BROWN, 

AUTHOB  OF 

HiSTOKY  OF  First   Sabbath  School  of   Bedford,   History  of 
Bedford,  and  Bedford  Old  Families. 


'T  is  strange,  —  but  true  ;  for  truth  is  always  strange  ; 
Stranger  than  tiction. 

Byron  — Don  Juan,  Canto  xiv.  St.  101. 


PUBLISHED  BY  THE  AUTHOR. 


R.   H.   BLODGETT,   PRINTER, 

30  Bromfield  St.,  Boston. 


Copyriglited  by  Author,  1892. 


"In  those  days,"  said  Hiawatha, 
"Lo!  how  all  things  fade  and  perish. 
From  the  memory  of  the  old  men 
Pass  away  the  great  traditions. 
The  achievements  of  the  warriors. 
The  adventures  of  the  hunters, 
All  the  wisdom  of  the  Medas, 
All  the  craft  of  the  Wahenos, 
All  the  marvellous  dreams  and  visions 
Of  the  Jossakeeds,  the  Prophets." 


M29S216 


DEDICATI  ON 


TO  MY  GRANDMOTHER, 

WHOSE  LIFE  WAS  A  BLESSING, 
AND    WHOSE    MEMORY    IS    A    BENEDICTION, 

€1)10  l)olume 

IS   GRATEFULLY    INSCRIBED 
BY  THE  AUTHOR.! 


INTRODUCTION. 


There  is  a  sentiment,  so  often  expressed  as  to  be 
classed  with  modern  proverbs,  that  a  parent  who  is  a 
wise  disciplinarian,  when  becoming  a  grand-parent  is 
over-indulgent. 

It  was  the  good  fortune  of  the  author  of  this  volume 
to  be  much  in  the  society  of  his  grand-parents,  espec- 
ially that  of  his  grandmother.  After  a  lapse  of  time 
sufficient  to  remove  all  sentimental  prejudices,  he 
would  enter  a  protest  against  the  commonly  accepted 
belief. 

It  is  to  his  grandmother  that  the  author  is  indebted 
for  the  facts  which  this  volume  contains. 

"Had  I  the  ability,  I  would  prove  to  the  world 
that  truth  is  stranger  than  fiction,"  was  an  expression 
of  hers  that  found  lodgment  in  the  mind  of  the  writer ; 
and  while  laying  no  claims  to  literary  ability,  he  has 
tried  to  clothe  a  series  of  truths  in  a  style  of  dress 
attractive  to  readers  of  all  ages,  knowing  that  the 
adult,  at  times,  is  not  averse  to  stories  especially 
adapted  to  younger  readers. 

The  one  credited  with  this  series  of  truths  spent 
her  life  in  the  place  of  her  nativity,  as  did  also  several 
generations  of  her  ancestors,  she  being  peculiarly 
adapted  by  nature  to  gather  and  retain  facts  which 
would  have  faded  from  other  minds. 

(5) 


6  INTRODUCTION. 

The  Author  was  not  supplied  with  many  of  the 
melodies  and  fairy  tales,  which  too  often  surfeit  the 
youth  of  to-day,  but  in  their  stead,  while  sitting  at 
the  fireside  through  the  long  hours  of  the  winter 
evenings,  was  entertained  by  his  grandmother  with 
true  stories,  some  of  which  are  herein  related. 

If  the  thoughts  expressed  at  times  seem  too 
mature  for  such  a  listener  it  may  be  credited  to  her 
who  believed  in  bringing  the  young  mind  up  to  hers 
rather  than  descending  to  the  level  of  the  child. 

The  Author  admits  that  he  has  not  strictly  adhered 
to  the  time  of  the  occurrence  of  the  events,  thereby 
aiming  to  guard  against  tresspassing  upon  the  sacred- 
ness  of  family  ties. 

The  Author,  at  first,  thought  of  including  the  lead- 
ing facts  with  the  History  of  Bedford,  but  at  length 
decided  to  give  them  under  assumed  names  for  obvi- 
ous reasons,  and  style  them  legends. 

In  order  that  the  customs  of  our  ancestors  may  not 
be  lost  sight  of  and  we  fail  to  appreciate  their  lives, 
a  series  of  cuts  is  added,  illustrative  of  the  times  and 
experiences  narrated  in  this  work. 

With  profound  gratitude  for  the  many  kind  words 
from  appreciative  readers  of  the  History  of  the  town, 
this  volume  of  Legends  is  offered  to  them  and  to  all 
who  may  peruse  it,  with  the  hope  that  it  will  not 
only  furnish  amusement  but  give  helpful  instruction. 


CONTENTS, 


THE   MYSTERIOUS   ROOM. 

THE   SILVER  CROWN. 

THE   WITCH   OF  SHAWSHINE. 

A  POD  OF  NINE  PEAS. 


ILLUSTRATIONS  BY  NEW  ENGLAND  MAGAZINE, 

C.  L.  FLINT,  F.  A.  LAWS,  AND   HELIOTYPE 

PRINTING  COMPANY. 


Frontispiece.    Home  Life. 

My  Grandmother, 

The  Living  Room, 

The  Parson  and  the  Miser,'*.* 

Larkin's  Shop,     .  .  .     ,4    . 

Cynthia  Smith's  Quilting,    .  . 

Horse  and  Sleigh, 

Old  School  House,     . 

The  Singing  School, 

Warning  the  Rats,     . 

Miss  Nibbs  left  the  Briggs  House, 

Home  of  Deacon  Sprague, 

Page  drove  his  Steers  to  the  Garden  Wall 

The  Miser's  Death  Bed, 

Funeral  of  Hezekiah  Pendleton, 

Hiding  the  Treasures, 

Opening  the  Mysterious  Room, 

Pendleton  Homestead, 

Meeting  House,    .... 

The  Crow  and  the  Raising, 

Buying  the  Wedding  Garments, 

A  Midnight  Revelation, 

Dividing  the  Treasures, 

"Cried  in  Meetin',"  .  . 

Marriage  of  Priscilla, 

Preaching  at  Home, 

A  Neighbor's  Home, 

The  Silver  Crown,     . 

Fitch's  Tavern,    .... 

The  little  Grave  among  the  Daisies, 

A  Family  Cradle, 

The  Mill  on  the  Shawshine, 

The  Bridal  Party, 

The  Shawshine  House, 

Michael  Bacon's  Home, 

Going  to  "  Meetin'," 

A  Pod  of  Nine  Peas, 


lEGENDS  OF  OLD  BEDFORD. 


THE    MYSTERIOUS    ROOM. 


FIRST   EVENING. 

>RISCILLA,  you  go  to  bed ;    I'm  the  one  the 
gentleman  wants  to  see,"  was  the  imperative 

K^  command  of  Sally,  the  elder  of  two  spinster 
sisters,^  to  the  younger. 

It  was  a  winter  night.  The  flames  of  the  broad, 
open  fireplace,  in  the  absence  of  the  needless  candle, 
made  more  sharp  and  vivid  the  shadows  on  the  oppo- 
site wall,  not  only  of  Priscilla,  but  a  neighboring 
swain,  Amariah  Quimby,  whose  glances  of  inquiry 
seemed  to  alternate  from  the  face  of  doubtful  years 
to  the  stars,  plainly  visible  through  the  broad  chim- 
ney, up  which  the  hickory  smoke  was  winding. 

The  pertinacity  of  the  angular  creature,  whose 
command  opens  our  story,  made  it  evident  to  the 
youthful  suitor  that  no  advances  from  him  could  be 
received  there,  unless  made  to  the  one  who  had  just  en- 
tered, whose  age  gave  her  the  precedence  in  household 
affairs  and  which  she  determined,  as  did  also  her  aged 
parents,  should  give  her  the  first  right  to  the  atten- 
tion of  the  gentlemen.  Having  no  desire  to  submit 
himself  to  the  whims  of  that  angular  personage  with 
the  aquiline  nose,  Amariah  took  down  his  three  cor- 
nered hat   from   the  old  oaken  peg,  cast  a  farewell 


10 


LEGP]XDS    OF    OLD    BEDFORD. 


glance  at  Priscilla,  for  lie  had  tender  feelings  towards 
her,  and  hastened  home,  adding  another  to  the  long 
list  of  those  who  had  met  with  similar  disappoint- 
ment. 


"  Priscilla,  yoii  go  to  bed  ;   I'm  the  one  the  geiitleniHii  wants  to  see." 

The  other  members  of  the  family  are  two  broad- 
shouldered,  hard-fisted  brothers  and  the  father  and 
mother  of  the  four  children,  both  far  advanced  in 
life.  A  homespun  gown  of  blue  was  the  every  day 
costume  of  the  girls,  while  that  of  the  boys  was  a 
loose  skirted  frock  and  trousers  of  home  manufacture. 
A  broad,  ruffled  cap  and  kerchief  of  blue  and  white 
plaid,  carefully  folded  over  the  shoulders,  finished 
the  mother's  costume.  That  of  the  boys  was  good 
enough  for  the  father,  with  an  added  fixture  in  the 
way  of  a  broad  leather  apron  that  saved  the  home- 


THE    MYSTERIOUS    ROOM.  11 

spun  frock  and  breeches,  which  latter  came  only  to 
the  knee  to  meet  the  long  stockings  that  completed 
the  dress  of  the  lower  limbs.  The  ancestral  dwelling, 
facing  square  to  the  south,  had  never  known  the 
painter's  brush  outside  or  in.  On  entering  it,  one  step 
down  was  taken,  thus  bringing  the  floors  a  little 
below  the  level  of  the  ground.  Their  white  surfaces 
revealed  no  lack  of  faithful  scouring,  neither  did  the 
amply  shelved  dresser,  on  which  was  arranged  in 
maidenish  precision  the  scanty  supply  of  pewter  and 
time-honored  blue  ware. 

The  singing  of  the  huge-mouthed  tea-kettle  on  the 
crane,  with  the  hum  of  the  ever  busy  wheel,  fur- 
nished the  music  for  the  living  room.  The  same- 
ness of  the  best  room  was  broken  by  the  well- 
sanded  floor,  where  grotesque  flgures  of  the  broom 
showed  an  attempt  at  an  artistic  flourish ;  the  solid 
mahogany  table,  its  surface  waxed  and  rubbed  until 
the  copy  of  Holy  Writ  that  lay  upon  it,  was  mirrored 
to  double  thickness ;  and  the  closely  curtained  bed 
of  down  in  the  corner ;  these,  with  a  few  straight- 
backed  chairs  against  the  wall,  made  the  company 
room.  Few  visitors  came  here,  so  there  was  little  use 
for  this  apartment.  Of  the  upper  rooms  one  only, 
that  dingy  north-east  corner  with  its  bars  and  bolts, 
interests  the  reader.  None  but  the  stealthy  footstep 
of  the  tyrannical  owner  ever  stopped  at  its  threshold. 
What  was  within  and  what  became  of  a  slowly  accu- 
mulating wealth,  none  knew,  other  than  he  whose 
"  Don't  you  dare,"  sent  a  chill  through  every  member 
of  the  household,  held  in  subjection  through  fear  of 
the  husband  and  father. 

To  live  in  this  house  with  any  degree  of  safety,  to 
say  nothing  of  comfort,  was  to  be  perfectly  submis- 


12  LEGENDS  OF  OLD  BEDFORD. 

sive  to  the  iron  will  wrapped  up  in  a  little,  wrinkled, 
bowed,  weird  figure,  whose  address  as  father  was 
obtained  through  fear  rather  than  respect,  on  the 
part  of  the  four  children,  who  were  kept  from  secur- 
ing the  benefit  to  be  obtained  from  the  few  weeks  of 
school  that  the  town  provided,  because  of  the  ever 
increasing  penuriousness  of  this  narrow  minded 
parent. 

The  godly  minister  of  the  town,  after  much 
anxiety,  called  at  the  home  of  the  Pendletons,  and 
in  the  discharge  of  his  duty  asked  for  the  tottering 
sire,  when  the  good  wife  meekly  answered,  "  Be's  in 
that  room  and  I  am  afraid  to  call  him,  for  he  always 
comes  out  in  a  rage  if  I  call  him  for  any  other  pur- 
pose than  to  come  to  his  meals  or  to  take  money  ;  he 
won't  dare  to  say  anything  to  you  or  when  you  are 
here,  but  when  you  are  gone  he'll  act  the  worse  and 
scold  the  more ;  but  I'll  call  him,  for  you  are  aware 
that  no  one  on  earth  dares  to  go  to  that  room." 
With  these  words  the  good  woman  left  the  room. 

Mr.  Whitford  regretted  that  he  was  liable  to  be 
the  occasion  of  another  scolding  from  the  head  of 
this  family  to  a  most  faithful  companion,  yet,  with 
the  hope  that  he  might  be  the  means  of  doing  good, 
he  allowed  him  to  be  thus  called. 

'^Father,  you'd  better  come  down  and  see  Parson 
Whitford,"  were  the  words  echoed  through  the  unfin- 
ished rooms  above,  soon  followed  by  the  sound  of  the 
clumsy  key  being  turned  in  the  rusty  lock  and  the 
clattering  of  the  hard  brogans  of  the  father  of  the 
Pendleton  family. 

"  Eh,  eh  —  good  morning,  Parson  Whitford.  How 
do  you  do  this  oold  morning  ?  "  were  the  words  of 
salutation  that  met  a  warm  response  from  the  rever- 


THE    MYSTERIOUS    ROOM.  13 

end  gentleman,  while  the  smile  on  the  little  russet 
face  showed  plainly  that  his  "  good  morning "  was 
only  superficial. 

''  Mr.  Pendleton,"  said  Parson  Whitford,  "  I  came 
up  to  tell  you  that  a  friend  of  mine  is  about  to  open 
a  private  school  in  the  village  and  I  want  you  to 
send  the  children." 

"Eh,  eh,"  began  the  little  man,  Mr.  Pendleton 
had  a  slight  catch  in  his  speech  which  served  as  a 
prelude  to  his  remarks  and  was  generally  regarded  by 
the  family  as  a  warning  of  something  unpleasant  to 
follow.  "Eh,  eh  —  send  them  great  boys  and  gals 
to  school,  big  enough  to  go  to  meetin'  barefoot,  send 
'em  to  school  ?  I  guess  not ;  and  I  guess  they'd  be 
ashamed  to  be  seen  there  anyhow." 

"  But,"  continued  the  pastor,  "  the  expense  is  not 
great." 

"  Eh,  eh  —  expense,  hey  ?  Do  you  think  I'm 
going  to  send  myself  to  the  town  for  the  sake  of 
eddicating  them  children  ? "  interrupted  the  little 
man. 

"  Ko,  Mr.  Pendleton,  I  know  very  well  you  can 
send  them  without  laying  yourself  liable  to  any 
suffering  and  with  no  sacrifice  on  your  part  that  you 
will  ever  feel,  for  we  all  know  that  you  have  a  plenty 
of  this  world's  goods,"  continued  the  good  pastor. 

"  Eh,  eh  —  I  guess  you  are  talking  about  what  you 
don't  know,"  replied  the  little  man  with  a  scuff"  of 
the  feet,  plainly  telling  to  the  good  wife  that  the 
wrath  of  her  husband  was  getting  fully  aroused,  and 
the  dreaded  outburst  was  not  far  distant.  But, 
thought  she,  if  he  will  only  keep  calm  till  Mr.  Whit- 
ford is  gone,  I  will  bear  it  without  a  word  of  com- 
plaint. 


14  LEGENDS  OF  OLD  BEDFORD. 

Like  many  a  faithful  wife,  Mrs.  Pendleton  was 
willing  to  suffer  alone  rather  than  expose  the  faults 
of  her  husband,  and  she  was  a  sufferer  too.  Only  a 
small  part  of  the  management  of  the  household  came 
to  her,  save  to  spin,  churn  and  plan  to  have  her  sons 
and  daughters  decently  attired  on  Sundays,  and  com- 
fortable on  week  days. 

"Now,  Mr.  Pendleton,"  continued  the  minister,  "I 
feel  it  my  duty  as  the  clergyman  of  this  town,  and 
your  pastor,  as  well  as  that  of  a  friend,  to  plainly  say 
to  you,  that  to  allow  your  sons  and  daughters  to  go 
on  in  life  with  no  more  advantages  than  they  have 
enjoyed,  is  a  great  wrong.  I  know  they  are  quite 
well  advanced  in  life  and  to  some  might  seem  too  old 
to  attend  school,  but  the  one  we  are  to  have  this  win- 
ter is  for  adults  and  they  won't  feel  out  of  place 
there.  And,"  he  continued,  "Mr.  Pendleton,  I  fear 
if  your  children  ever  come  in  possession  of  your 
wealth  they  will  spend  it  unwisely,  because  of  the 
little  opportunity  they  have  had  of  mingling  with 
others  and  securing  the  knowledge  necessary  to  make 
their  way  in  the  world." 

Mr.  Pendleton  bore  this  plain  talk  from  his  pastor 
with  as  much  grace  as  it  was  possible  for  him  to 
show,  and,  with  an  occasional  scuff  of  the  feet,  sup- 
pressed his  wrath,  while  Mr.  Whitford,  determined 
to  do  his  full  duty,  added,  "Mr.  Pendleton,  I  fear 
you  are  breaking  the  commandment,  'Thou  shalt 
have  no  other  Gods  before  me,'  and  that  your  God  is 
locked  up  in  that  room  where  you  spend  so  much 
of  your  time,  but  you  must  know,  brother  Pendleton," 
striving  to  touch  the  heart  of  the  little  russet-faced 
man  by  introducing  a  more  familiar  address,  "that 
the   time   is   not   far  distant  when  you  and  1  must 


THE    MYSTERIOUS    ROOM. 


15 


leave  all  that  we  have  accumulated  here  aud  give  an 
account  of  our  stewardship  to  the  great  Judge 
above." 

"Eh,  eh — leave  all,  hey?  Well,  I  guess  I  shan't 
have  much  to  leave,  and  if  I  did  as  you  want  me  to, 
I  shouldn't  have  enough  to  bury  me,"  replied  Mr. 
Pendleton,  with  the  emphasis  of  a  double  scuff  of 
his  feet. 


The  Parson  and  the  Miser, 

"Now,  my  friend,"  said  the  good  pastor,  rising  to 
go,  "  I  hope  your  money  will  spend  well  and  that  you 
will  see  that  you  are  not  fully  discharging  your  duty 
towards  the  children  whom  your  kind.  Heavenly 
Father  has  given  you,  in  depriving  them  of  an  or- 
dinary education.  There  is  a  very  homely  saying 
which  is  replete  with  truth,  '  What  is  got  over  the 
devil's  back  goes  under  his  feet,'  and  I  feel  that  rob- 
bing children  of  an  ordinary  means  of  obtaining  a 
living,  is   a  kind  of  cheating,  and  I  doubt  not,  Mr. 


16  LEGENDS  OF  OLD  BEDFOKD, 

Pendleton,  at  some  future  time,  those  idols  I  have 
reason  to  believe  you  are  carving  out  in  that  lonely- 
room,  will  fall  down  and  crush  you  or  your  blameless 
children,  and  God  forbid,  even  bring  trouble  to  your 
faithful  wife  in  this  world.  You  know  full  well  the 
Kingdom  of  Heaven  has  no  mansion  for  any  one  who 
prefers  other  Gods  than  Jehovah  and  seeks  for  salva- 
tion through  any  other  source  than  His  Son." 

After  a  word  of  encouragement,  kindly  given  to 
the  trembling  mother,  who  had  ventured  from  the 
kitchen  on  observing  that  the  conversation  was  draw- 
ing to  a  close,  the  good  pastor  retired,  and  the  miserly 
tyrant  crept  off  to  his  den  without  a  word  that  had 
been  feared  by  his  faithful  companion  and  the  girls^ 
who  soon  appeared  from  their  hiding  places.  Sally 
at  once  went  with  her  broom  to  the  best  room,  where 
their  pastor  had  been  entertained,  and  repaired  the 
figures  in  the  sanding  as  well  as  she  could,  while 
Priscilla  revived  the  hum  of  the  great  wheel.  As 
soon  as  Mr.  Whitford's  chaise  was  well  down  the  hill, 
Seth  and  Saul,  the  two  sons,  came  from  the  rickety 
barn,  where  they  tremblingly  did  the  father's  bidding 
when  he  was  at  home,  and  with  some  degree  of  confi- 
dence, planned  for  an  attack  on  the  iron  bound  apart- 
ment when  he  was  away.  When  the  time  came  for 
carrying  out  their  plans,  they  somehow  lost  what 
courage  they  had  and,  partly  because  of  their  regard 
for  their  mother,  failed  to  carry  out  any  attack  that 
they  had  hoped  to  make. 

The  drifting  snow  that  whistled  about  the  house,  together 
witli  the  intense  interest  of  this  evening's  story,  for  grandma 
was  in  her  happiest  mood,  had  so  charmed  the  listener  that  he 
now,  for  tlie  first  time,  broke  out  witli  indignation,  "Well, 
grandma,  I  should  say  those  folks  were  fools  to  be  so  run  over 


THE    MYSTERIOUS    ROOM.  IT 

by  that  old  man.  I  wish  I  had  been  one  of  them,  I  would  have 
upset  his  den  and  found  out  what  he  had  there  that  made  him 
such  a  terror  to  all  the  folks." 

"  Ah,  but  my  child,"  said  grandma,  "  if  you  had 
been  one  of  them  you  would  have  done  no  better. 
You  must  know,  or  will  some  day  learn,  that  when 
people  are  kept  down  and  hardly  allowed  to  think 
for  themselves,  they  grow  up  with  a  very  different 
spirit  from  that  which  controls  people  who  are  sent 
to  school  and  clothed  so  that  they  feel  at  ease  in  the 
company  of  others,  and  mingle  with  the  outside 
world.  Why,  my  child,  there  was  no  such  thing  as 
a  newspaper  or  book  in  that  home,  and  the  almanac 
was  about  all  they  had  except  the  Bible,  and  those 
four  children  had  so  little  learning  that  they  could 
read  them  with  but  little  understanding.  I  tell  you, 
Ned,  that  people  kept  under  as  they  were  all  their 
early  life,  have  but  little  courage.  It  is  impossible 
for  you  to  fully  appreciate  their  position,  for  these 
times  are  so  very  different  from  the  days  when  Heze- 
kiah  Pendleton  ruled  that  household,  but  you  can 
learn  from  what  I  tell  you  of  these  people,  to  more 
fully  appreciate  the  blessings  with  which  you  are  sur- 
rounded and  cease  wishing  you  were  rich  as  I  so  often 
hear  you  express  it,  for  you  must  see  from  what  I 
have  already  told  you  that  wealth  did  not  bring  con- 
tentment or  even  comfort  in  this  case." 

"But,  grandma,  will  you  tell  me  what  Mr.  Pendleton  did  all 
the  time  in  that  dark  room?"  anxiously  inquired  the  boy, 
seeing  that  grandma  was  about  to  close  the  story  for  the  even- 
ing. 

"Well,  m}-  child,  you  will  have  to  wait  until 
another  evening,  I  guess,  for  I  have  a  good  deal  more 


18  LEGENDS  OF  OLD  BEDFORD. 

that  I  can  tell  you  about  the  family  and  their  asso- 
ciates which  I  hope  will  be  of  profit  to  you  as  well  as 
amusement.  The  question  you  have  now  asked  me 
was  the  subject  of  wonder  and  speculation  fully 
twenty  years  in  this  community;  some  would  say  he 
was  there  alone  in  meditation  with  God,  but  they 
would  soon  give  up  that  idea,  knowing  that  one  who 
meditated  upon  the  mind  and  character  of  the  Divine 
One  could  not  conduct  himself  as  he  did  for  a  single 
day,  to  say  nothing  of  years.  Some  thought  he  was 
in  league  with  the  rul^r  of  the  realm  of  darkness, 
but  as  his  family  and  the  town-folks  had  to  wait  till 
death  opened  the  door,  I  think  it  won't  be  unreason- 
pble  for  you  to  wait  awhile ;  but  don't  spend  your 
time  in  wondering  over  that  question,  rather  seek  to 
be  contented,  and  by  doing  your  duty  show  that  you 
appreciate  your  many  blessings." 

With  a  good-night  from  the  venerable  lady,  the 
happy  youth  was  soou  asleep  to  dream  of  that  mys- 
terious room. 


SECOND   EVENING. 

ACROSS  the  meadow,  by  the  side  of  the  hill, 
lived  a  thrifty  farmer,  Jacob  Briggs,  whose 
family  consisted  of  wife  Lucy  and  two  burly 
boys  of  twelve  and  fourteen  years,  named  George 
and  Josiah,  respectively.  Now  this  "Goodman  Ja- 
cob," as  the  people  styled  him,  strangely  enough 
had  gained  the  confidence  of   the  entire  Pendleton 


THE    MYSTERIOUS    EOOM.  19 

family,  and  all  secrets  and  difficulties  were  entrust- 
ed to  him,  save  this  one.  In  fact,  my  child,  Jacob 
Briggs  was  the  closest-mouthed  man  I  ever  knew, 
any  one  could  tell  from  the  expression  of  his  counte- 
nance that  he  would  never  betray  the  confidence  of 
another,  and  I  tell  you,  my  boy,  that  is  a  noble  trait 
of  character  in  any  one  ;  if  there  were  more  such 
people  in  these  days,  there  would  be  less  trouble  in 
society.  If  Mr.  Briggs  ever  heard  anything  bad  of  a 
person  he  would  suppress  it,  and  he  never  allowed 
himself  to  tell  a  person  anything  that  he  knew  would 
wound  his  feelings.  He  had  justly  won  the  confi- 
dence of  the  entire  community,  as  well  as  that  of  the 
Pendletons. 

During  one  driving  north-east  snow  storm,  about 
like  that  of  the  evening  when  I  commenced  this  story, 
when  no  one  was  expected  at  the  home  of  the  Briggs', 
who  should  come  puflB.ng  at  the  height  of  his  speed  to 
the  back  door  but  Seth,  the  older  and  coarser  of  the 
Pendleton  boys,  or  young  men  I  ought  to  call  them, 
—  for  they  had  reached  manhood  physically,  long 
before  this. 

Supposing  that  nothing  but  distress  could  have 
started  any  one  out  in  such  a  storm.  Mother  Briggs 
hastened  to  the  door  with  knitted  brow  and  anxious 
face,  and  in  spite  of  the  insifting  snow,  feelingly 
exclaimed,  "  Seth,  what  is  the  matter  ?  Has  your 
mother  had  another  of  those  spells  ?  Why  didn't 
you  put  the  wormwood  right  on  before  you  started  ? 
I  suppose  the  girls  are  doing  that, —  but  how  bad 
is  she  ?  " 

Seth,  who  by  this  time  had  shaken  oft'  the  snow 
flakes  that  covered  his  rugged  form,  displayed  a  look 
not  akin  to  such  trouble,  but  to  anxiety  of  another 


20  LEGENDS  OF  OLD  BEDFORD. 

kind,  soon  made  known  by  his  own  words.  Mr. 
Briggs,  having  been  called  from  the  attic,  where  he 
was  shelling  corn  on  a  shovel,  seated  himself  before 
the  broad  open  fire  with  his  good  wife  and  Seth, 
whose  clothes  were  already  steaming  by  the  flashing 
flames.  After  several  tosses  of  the  head  and  a  num- 
ber of  attempts  to  clear  his  throat,  Seth  made  known 
the  cause  of  this  unseasonable  visit. 

''What  do  you  think,  Mr.  Briggs,  that  Dad  did 
last  night,  when  we  were  all  drinking  our  catnip  ? '^ 
The  Pendletons  drank  catnip  tea  unless  a  neighbor 
happened  to  sup  with  them.  "  Why,  I  haven't  seen 
him  so  good-natered  for  months  to  the  whole  of  us, 
and  ma'am  thinks  it  is  a  warning  of  something  awful 
coming.  '  The  sunny  hours  before  a  thunder  storm/ 
she  says.  Why,  he  said  he'd  come  to  the  conclusion 
that  none  of  us  was  ever  going  to  git  married,  and  he 
was  going  to  make  an  offer,  and  what  do  you  suppose 
it  was  ?  He  said  he'd  give  to  the  one  of  us  that 
would  git  married  tirst,  the  Simpson  farm.  Now, 
what  do  you  think  of  that  ?  " 

Seth  was  too  full  to  give  Mr.  Briggs  a  chance  to 
answer  any  of  these  questions,  but  went  on  to  describe 
the  Simpson  place,  which  was  well  known  to  Mr. 
Briggs,  as  he  was  one  of  the  assessors  of  the  town,  and 
knew  the  appraised  value  of  all  the  real  estate  in  the 
community. 

"That's  a  fine  house  and  forty  acies  of  good  land, 
besides  the  cranberry  medder,  and  he  says  he  means 
it  too,"  continued  Seth. 

"Do  tell!"  exclaimed  Mother  Briggs.  "I  should 
think  something  was  coming,  and  I  don't  wonder 
your  mother  looks  for  some  calamity  after  such  a 
strange  thing  on  the  j^art  of  your  father." 


THE    MYSTERIOUS    ROOM.  21 

"Now,  what  I  want  is,  to  git  that  place  myself. 
I  know  neither  of  the  gals  will  git  it,  for  Sally  is 
bound  to  be  married  first  'cause  she  is  the  oldest,  and 
no  one  will  have  her  ;  and  as  for  Saul,  he  hain't  got 
spunk  enough.  Now,  what  shall  I  do  first,  Mr. 
Briggs  ?  I  lay  awake  last  night,  and  I  thought  of 
Patty  Potter,  who  lives  at  the  Deacon's.  Do  you  sup- 
pose she  would  be  willing  to  have  me  ?  " 

Here  was  quite  a  pause.  All  three  seemed  intent 
on  watching  the  flames  as  they  crackled  and  rolled 
up  the  chimney.  One  might  have  known,  however, 
that  Mr.  Briggs  was  giving  the  peculiar  question 
serious  consideration,  from  the  manner  in  which  he 
ran  his  fingers  through  his  chestnut  locks.  At  last, 
but  not  until  Seth  began  to  be  a  little  discouraged, 
Mr.  Briggs  broke  the  spell  and  said :  — 

"You  had  better  go  to  the  singing  school  in  the 
village.  They  say  that  is  a  great  place  for  making 
matches.  Go  next  Tuesday  evening ;  Patty  will  be 
there,  and  when  they  get  through  the  singing  meeting, 
you  just  step  up  and  ask  her  if  you  may  have  the 
pleasure  of  accompanying  her  home." 

"  But  what  shall  I  do  if  she  says  no  ?  "  anxiously 
inquired  Seth. 

"  Oh,  never  mind  that,  the  girls  often  say  no  when 
they  don't  mean  it ;  but  step  right  up  to  her  and 
insist  on  going,"  said  Mr.  Briggs,  roguishly. 

Seth,  whose  face  was  aglow  with  hope  by  this 
time,  burst  in  with  the  inquiry,  "  Shall  I  ask  her  to 
have  me  right  off,  or  have  I  got  to  wait  till  another 
night  ?  I  can't  waste  much  time,  for  Saul  will  be  try- 
ing to  git  some  one,  and  I  am  bound  to  git  that  farm, 
so  close  to  Squire  Smith's  it  ain't  to  be  sneezed  at,  I 
tell  you." 


22  LEGENDS  OF  OLD  BEDFORD. 

"  I  wouldn't  speak  right  out  the  first  night  but,  use 
your  judgment  and  let  me  know  how  you  get  along. 
Patty  is  a  tine  girl  and  worth  trying  hard  for,"  said 
Mr.  Briggs,  encouragingly. 

"  But,  Mr.  Briggs,"  responded  Seth,  "  I  have  got  to 
have  these  brogans  mended  or  have  some  new  ones 
before  I  can  go  to  the  singing  school  or  anywhere 
else,  and  Dad  won't  give  me  any  money;  but  I  am 
going  over  to  Larkin's  shop  before  I  go  home  and  see 
what  he  can  do  for  me.  I  guess  he'll  trust  me,  for  he 
knows  Dad  will  pay  rather  than  git  into  trouble.  I'll 
come  over  and  tell  you  what  Patty  says ;  if  Saul  or 
the  gals  come  over,  don't  tell  them  I  've  been  here." 

With  these  words  Seth  started  across  the  lots  for 
Mr.  Larkin's. 

"  Now,  father,'^  said  Mrs.  Briggs,  as  soon  as  Seth 
was  well  out  of  the  way,  "those  Pendletons  have 
come  to  us  for  advice  on  various  subjects,  but  this  is 
a  new  one." 

"  Sure  enough,"  said  he. 

"  But,"  she  continued,  "  what  do  you  think  has 
come  across  the  old  gentleman,  that  he  should  start 
out  with  this  offer  ?  Stop  —  stop  ;  who  is  that  com- 
ing ?  "  she  said,  lowering  her  voice,  before  her  hus- 
band had  time  to  give  an  answer  to  her  first  question. 

"  That  is  Saul,"  replied  Mr.  Briggs  ;  "  now  be  sure 
that  nothing  is  said." 

Turning  to  Saul,  who  was  well  nigh  in,  she  ex- 
claimed with  seeming  surprise,  "  Good-morning,  Saul, 
how  are  all  the  folks  ?  " 

"  About  the  same,"  replied  the  awkward  fellow, 
excepting  Dad,  and  he  is  getting  real  good-natered. 
Why,  he  said  last  night  that  he'd  give  the  Simpson 
farm  to  the  one  of  us  that  would  git  married  first." 


THE    MYSTERIOUS    ROOM.  23 

"That  is  a  new  departure,"  slyly  responded  Mrs. 
Briggs. 

"  Yes,  'tis ;  but  I  don't  believe  mucli  in  it,"  contin- 
ued Saul,  with  a  doubtful  shake  of  the  head.  "But 
Seth  is  all  up  on  it  and  went  off,  as  soon  as  we  had 
foddered  the  cows,  to  git  his  brogans  mended  up  to 
Larkin's  shop,  and  the  gals  are  a  little  stirred  up  on 
it  too ;  but  they  can't  agree,  and  it  is  of  no  use  for 
them  to  think  of  it.  No  one  will  have  Seth  if  he 
tries,  but  he  says  he  is  going  to,  though.  Did  you 
know,  Mr.  Briggs,  that  Parson  Jones  has  bought  the 
Goodnough  farm  and  is  going  to  live  there  ?  I  guess 
he  tliinks  this  town  will  hire  him  to  preach,"  contin- 
ued Saul. 

"Why  no,"  exclaimed  Mrs.  Briggs,  voicing  the 
surprise  of  herself  and  husband ;  "  when  was  that  ? 
Why,  his  wife  is  dead ;  how  can  he  carry  on  a  farm 
with  no  one  to  take  care  of  the  dairy  ?  " 

"  I  don't  know  how  that  is,"  said  Saul,  "but  I  must 
hurry  back,  for  Seth  is  off  and  Dad  won't  come  out  of 
that  den  of  his  if  the  cattle  ain't  watered  'till  night ; 
but  he'll  blaze  at  us  if  we  let  them  go  for  an  hour 
over  the  time." 

"  Give  my  regards  to  your  mother  and  the  girls," 
exclaimed  the  familiar  voice  of  Mrs.  Briggs  from  the 
cheese  room,  whither  she  had  gone  to  attend  to  the 
duties  of  the  day.  "  And  tell  them,"  she  continued, 
"  my  last  churning  was  the  best  of  the  season,  little 
too  white,  but  good  for  winter  butter.  Has  he  gone, 
father  ? "  the  same  voice  followed  with  a  whisper, 
which  grew  louder  when  assured  that  Saul  was  be- 
yond hearing.  I  declare,  Mr.  Pendleton  has  got  them 
pretty  well  stirred  up,  but  Seth  seems  to  be  the  most 
aroused  and  I  hope  he  will  succeed.     I  don't  see  why 


24  LEGEXDS  OF  OLD  BEDFORD. 

he  won't  make  a  good  husband  ;  to  be  sure,  he  is 
rather  awkward,  but  a  good  wife  will  help  him  to 
overcome  those  failings,  and  with  that  Simpson  place 
^11  clear,  they  would  have  a  good  start." 

^'  I  think  so,  too,"  said  Mr.  Briggs,  "  and  I  mean 
to  help  it  along.  I  think  it  is  real  missionary  work 
to  aid  in  getting  one  of  those  Peridletons  out  from 
the  iron  sway  of  their  father.  If  you  see  Patt}^,  you 
just  speak  to  her ;  she  will  be  at  the  quilting  to-mor- 
row, for  she  is  always  ready  to  lend  a  hand  in  all 
good  work.  You  suggest  to  her  that  there  may  be 
an  occasion  for  another  quilting  if  she  is  willing, 
and  that  will  set  her  to  thinking  before  the  singing 
school." 

'^Now,  father,  I  am  afraid  you  are  overdoing  the 
thing,"  said  good  Mrs.  Briggs,  reprovingly. 

"Here,  Jied,"  said  grandma,  "you  can  but  see  that  the 
ignorance  of  the  unfortunate  children  began  very  soon  to 
show  itself.  No  young  man  who  had  enjoyed  ordinary  advan- 
tages would  have  started  out  as  did  Seth,  and,  in  fact,  no 
father  who  had  done  his  duty  by  his  children,  would  have 
made  any  such  proposition.  As  you  have  never  been  al- 
lowed to  spend  your  leisure  hours  in  a  cobbler's  shop,  you  will 
not  fully  appreciate  the  position  of  Seth  when  reaching  the 
workshop  of  Mr.  Larkin." 

Seth,  on  finding  that  his  job  could  be  done  right 
away,  concluded  to  stop,  and  as  the  pair  of  well-worn 
brogans  was  all  that  he  possessed,  he  saw  there  was 
no  other  way  to  put  them  in  trim  in  time  for  the 
singing  school  than  to  wait  while  Mr.  Larkin  made 
the  needed  repairs. 

"  Seth,  you  ought  to  go  to  the  singing  school," 
shouted  the  little  bald-headed  man,  who  sat  at  a 
low  bench  in  one  corner.     "  They  say  the  boys  and 


THE    MYSTERIOUS    ROOM. 


25 


girls  are  all  getting  matched,  and  you  won't  stand 
any  show  at  all  after  this  season,"  continued  he,  little 
thinking  he  had  touched  a  tender  chord  when  he 
addressed  this  remark  to  Seth,  all  the  time  driving 
in  the  pegs  to  a  stout  cowhide  of  overgrown  propor- 
tion. 

"  That's  so,"  drawled  out  a  portly  fellow  while 
turning  about  on  his  stool  for  a  rest  and  a  pinch  of 
snuff. 

"  Yes,  yes ;  that's  just  what  I  told  my  wife,"  said 
a  third,  who  had  just  entered  and  stood  with  ox-whip 
in  hand.  "I  expect  all  three  of  our  gals  will  be 
spoke  for,  before  that  singing  school  is  over ;  and  as 
for  my  Jake,  he  is  arter  some  of  them  himself." 

Seth,  for  whose  benefit  these  remarks  had  been 
made,  could  stand  it  no  longer,  but  stammeringly 
exclaimed  :  — 


1^ 


;iA 'i^Mi,  i"'V'i!Lc: 


Larkin's  Shop. 


26  LEGENDS  OF  OLD  BEDFORD. 

"  Well,  I  am  going  to  that  singing  school ;  that's 
what  I'm  gitting  my  brogans  fixed  up  for ;  not  that  I 
expect  to  learn  to  sing,  but  I'm  bound  to  git  the 
Simpson  farm.  Perhaps  you  don't  know  that  Dad 
has  offered  to  give  that  nice  farm,  cranberry  medder 
and  all,  to  the  one  of  us  that  will  git  married  first^ 
and  Mr.  Briggs  tells  me  to  go  to  the  singing  school 
and  go  home  with  — with  some  one." 

Here  Seth  wisely  put  a  stop  to  his  injudicious^ 
exposure,  which  called  forth  the  exclamation  from  all 
hands,  "Who?  Who?  Who?"  but  Seth  shook  his 
head,  and,  with  a  pleased  countenance,  began  to  tie 
the  leather  strings  that  held  the  freshly  tapped  bro- 
gans in  place. 

After  promising  to  settle  the  bill  as  soon  as  he 
could  get  the  needful  change,  Seth  arose  to  go,  when 
the  little  bald-headed  man  exclaimed :  — 

"  My  Isaac  says  that  school  is  good  for  nothing. 
They  don't  learn  a  thing,  for  they  are  sparking  all  the 
time,  and  the  master  can't  make  them  attend  to  time 
or  tune." 

This  remark  called  forth  from  a  tall,  lean  figure 
that  sat  partly  screened  behind  a  side  of  leather,, 
these  words,  which  he  jerked  out  between  the  insert- 
ing and  pulling  of  his  waxed  end  :  — 

"Yes,  but  Patty  Potter  settled  his  case  the  other 
night  when  he  stepped  up  to  her,  my  Hannah  says, 
and  she  saw  it." 

With  these  words  ringing  in  his  ears,  Seth  started 
for  home,  meditating  as  he  went,  and  sometimes  get- 
ing  so  lost  in  thought  as  to  find  himself  talking 
aloud.  "  Now,  if  Patty  Potter  wouldn't  let  Ike  Fos- 
ter go  home  with  her,  perhaps  she  won't  me,"  mut- 
tered  Seth  with  a   shake   of   the   head.     "But   I'm 


THE    MYSTERIOUS    ROOM.  27 

bound  to  try,  and  when  she  knows  about  the  Simpson 
farm,  and  I'll  tell  her  the  first  thing,  she'll  let  me  go 
I'll  bet."  Here  the  revery  of  Seth  was  suddenly  cut 
short  by  an  unexpected  shout  from  a  figure  in  blue 
frock  and  high  boots,  that  proved  to  be  Hanson  Page, 
a  good  neighbor,  who  was  on  his  way"  to  town. 

"  They  tell  me  your  father  is  getting  pretty  feeble 
and  ain't  going  to  be  able  to  guard  that  garret  locker 
always.  Then  I  suppose,  Saul,  the  gals  and  you  will 
have  things  about  as  you  want  them." 

"I  don't  know  about  that,  but  Dad  offered  the 
Simpson  farm  to  the  one  that  will  git  married  first, 
and  I'm  bound  to  git  it,"  unwisely  added  Seth,  not 
thinking  the  news  would  spread  like  wildfire  through 
the  village. 

Seth,  in  his  newly  tapped  brogans,  made  haste  for 
home  and  was  met  at  the  door  by  his  good  mother, 
who  reprovingly  said,  "  Where  have  you  been  all  this 
time  ?  The  forelog  is  all  burnt  out,  the  eggs  ain't 
got  and  they  will  all  freeze.  Saul  has  been  off,  and 
the  girls  are  so  full  of  silly  notions  about  that  Simp- 
son farm  that  they  are  just  good  for  nothing.  I  guess 
your  father  has  spoiled  the  whole  of  you.  Oh,  'tis  a 
pity  he  hadn't  put  a  little  good  sense  into  your  heads 
by  keeping  you  at  school  instead  of  bringing  you  up 
in  this  kind  of  way." 

Here  the  good  woman  brought  her  complainings  to 
a  sudden  stop,  for  the  quick  ear  of  Seth  heard  the 
father,  and  gave  the  warning,  "Dad  is  coming,"  which 
was  always  regai-ded  as  the  best  reason  for  being  busy 
about  the  chores.  Mrs.  Pendleton  was  a  thoroughly 
good  woman,  and  evinced  not  a  little  sound  judgment 
when  she  dared  to  express  her  own  thoughts. 


28  LEGENDS  OF  OLD  BEDFORD. 

' '  You,  J^ed,  have  yet  to  learn  that  many  a  good  woman  is 
kept  from  doing  the  most  for  her  children  or  appearing  at  her 
best,  because  of  a  tyrannical  husband." 

"  Eh,  eh  ! "  growled  the  little  russet-faced  man, 
before  he  reached  the  bottom  step,  "it's  going  to 
be  a  cold  night.  Where's  Sally  and  Priscilla  and  the 
boys  ?  The  f orelog  is  all  burnt  out  and  my  cider  is 
stone  cold,"  continued  he  as  he  stood  before  the 
smouldering  embers  taking  a  sip  from  the  tall  mug 
that  always  stood  in  the  corner  of  the  great  fireplace 
in  order  that  the  beverage  might  be  of  a  temperature 
agreeable  to  his  taste. 

"I  believe  you  have  spoiled  the  whole  of  them 
children  about  the  Simpson  farm,"  meekly  expressed 
the  mother,  as  she  slackened  the  big  wheel  to  which 
she  had  hastened  on  the  approach  of  her  husband. 

*'  The  cup  of  steaming  catnip  served,  and  chores  outside  and 
in,  all  done,  we  will  leave  the  family  about  the  snapping,  flam- 
ing fire  for  the  evening.  They  did,  sometmes,  sit  down  to- 
gether, but  there  was  not  that  sweet  sympathy  and  kindly 
feeling  existing  which  you  would  enjoy  or  which  is  to  be  found 
in  any  home  where  each  member  of  the  household  thinks  of 
and  works  to  promote  the  comfort  of  the  other." 

Thus  grandma  closed  the  evening's  story  and  gave 
the  usual  good-night  blessing. 


THE    MYSTERIOUS    KOOM.  29 


THIRD   EVENING. 

^^^jgjjg«?HEW  !  Whew  !  How  the  wind  blows  ;  been 
v^E^K  ^l^^i^g  ^1^  night/'  exclaimed  Priscilla, 
«,j^^^^  while  pouring  the  cups  of  catnip  the  fol- 
lowing morning.  "I'm  afraid  the  roads  will  be 
blocked  so  we  can't  git  to  Cynthia's  quilting.  Saul, 
did  Mrs.  Briggs  say  anything  about  the  quilting  ?  " 

"  Yes,"  replied  Saul ;  "  and  she  sent  her  regards  to 
the  whole  of  you  and  wanted  I  should  tell  you  she'd 
churned  the  day  before  and  got  some  white  butter, 
but  I  guess  she  was  going  to  have  some  color  to  it, 
for  I  saw  a  good  mess  of  carrot  on  the  table." 

"  I  s'pose  she  is  going,"  said  Sally. 

"  Yes ;  but  she  was  afraid  the  weather  was  going 
to  be  bad,"  added  Saul;  "yet  she  said  she  had 
rather  it  would  be  stormy  on  Candlemas  Day." 

"  Sure  enough,  this  is  the  second  of  February.  I'm 
glad  it  ain't  clear  and  bright,  for  then  winter  would 
have  another  flight,"  ejaculated  the  good  mother. 

Here  the  inquisitive  lad  broke  in  upon  the  story  by  saying, 
"  Grandma,  will  yoii  tell  me  what  you  mean  by  Candlemas 
Day?" 

*' Yes,  Ned  ;  it  is  the  second  day  of  February.  In  the  early 
days  of  the  Roman  Catholic  Church,  a  festival  was  held  on  the 
second  day  of  February,  when  there  was  a  procession  with 
many  lighted  candles,  supposed  to  commemorate  Christ,  the 
light  of  the  world.  All  candles  to  be  used  in  the  altar  service 
during  the  year  were  consecrated  on  that  occasion.  It  was 
thought  by  the  ancients  that  a  fine  Candlemas  foretold  a 
severe  winter.  Various  couplets  conveying  that  idea  are  re- 
peated on  that  day.    The  Scotch  say  : 

'  If  Candlemas  is  fair  and  clear, 
There'll  be  twa  winters  in  the  year.' 


30  LEGENDS  OF  OLD  BEDFORD. 

"  A  family  saying  at  my  home  was  : 

'  Candlemas  Day;  half  your  corn  and  half  your  hay.' 

Thus  implying  that  winter  was  just  half  gone,  and  that  half 
the  supplies  should  be  still  in  the  harn.  But,  my  child,"  said 
grandma,  impressively,  "  such  things  are  far  from  helpful,  yet 
I  heard  them  during  my  younger  days  and  they  seem  to  have 
an  influence  on  me  up  to  this  time.  I  want  you  to  come  up  free 
from  such  whims,  and  the  impressions  that  are  made  on  your 
mind  now  are  going  to  be  lasting.  Why,  I  used  to  be  told  that 
to  see  the  new  moon  through  a  glass  was  to  have  trouble  while 
it  lasted,  yet  it  is  an  extremely  foolish  notion ;  but  I  must  con- 
fess I  had  rather  see  it  without  the  glass,  for  the  impression 
has  so  strong  a  hold  on  my  mind  —  but  to  my  story.  Now,  my 
boy,  if  you  don't  want  me  to  wander  you  must  keep  your 
questions  till  I  am  through  for  the  evening,"  said  grand- 
ma. 

Seth,  who  was  busy  putting  down  the  brown  bread 
and  cheese  with  his  cup  of  catnip,  here  shouted, 
"  What  was  you  over  to  Mr.  Briggs'  for  ?  " 

"For  the  same  reason  that  you  was,  I  guess.  I 
tracked  you  across  the  orchard  lot,'^  replied  Saul. 

"  Eh,  eh  ! "  exclaimed  the  little  man  at  the  head  of 
the  table,  ''  I  didn't  suppose  you'd  all  make  fools  of 
yourselves  when  I  told  you  I'd  give  the  Simpson 
farm  to  you,  but  I'm  bound  to  stick  to  my  offer  now 
I've  said  it." 

Breakfast  over,  the  brindled  steers  were  hitched  to 
the  clumsy  oak  sled,  and  the  boys,  with  the  father, 
cleared  the  road  in  time  for  all  hands  to  go  to  Cyn- 
thia Smith's  quilting.  They  were  a  little  late,  but  in 
season  for  the  first  rolling  and  ready  to  aid  in  putting 
in  the  "shellwork."  The  Pendletons,  mother  and 
girls,  were  very  skilful  at  quiltings,  and  their  pres- 
ence was  most  desirable  on  these  occasions. 

"  What  a  brisk  set  of  hands,  and  all  hard  at  it," 


THE    MYSTERIOUS    ROOM. 


31 


exclaimed   Madam   Jones    as   she  entered   from  the 
kitchen  with  cap-strings  flying. 

"  Good-afternoon,"  Avas  the  salutation  from  side  to 
side,  as  hands  were  extended  from  various  corners. 


Cynthia  Smith's  Quilting. 


"  Herrin'  bone  !  "  exclaimed  Hannah  Nibbs  ;  "■  I 
always  did  like  that  pattern." 

"  Yes,  'tis  pretty,  but  there's  a  deal  of  work  in  it," 
responded  the  Deacon's  wife. 

"But  many  hands  make  light  work.  Come,  it's 
time  to  roll  on  this  side,"  exclaimed  Hannah,  with 
the  usual  business  air  which  she  always  assumed  on 
such  occasions. 

"  Mrs.  Briggs,  what  are  you  thinking  of  ?  you  seem 
to  be  in  a  serious  frame  of  mind  this  afternoon ;  hope 
none  of  the  boys  are  sick?"   inquired  Madam  Jones. 


32  LEGENDS  OF  OLD  BEDFORD. 

"No  —  no,  I  thank  yon,"  replied  Mrs.  Briggs,  wip- 
ing her  glasses.  "  I  never  can  pnt  in  herring  bone 
and  talk  too,  for  it's  rather  of  a  particular  figure  you 
know  ;  but  there's  Mrs.  Pendleton  and  her  girls,  who 
axe  so  skilful  in  quilting  they  go  on  with  as  little 
concern  as  they  have  in  footing  a  stocking.  I  was 
thinking,  however,  and  I  have  been  ever  since  I 
heard  a  bit  of  news  a  few  days  ago,  that  I  would  like 
to  know  who  we  are  going  to  have  for  neighbors  on 
the  Simpson  farm." 

"Why,"  exclaimed  a  chorus  of  voices,  "has  Mr. 
Pendleton  sold  it  ?  " 

"  No  —  no ;  but  —  but  —  "  here  Mrs.  Briggs  stopped. 

"  Oh,  never  mind,  Mrs.  Briggs,"  exclaimed  Hannah 
Nibbs,  "  I  know  what  you  mean,  and  I  ain't  afraid  to 
tell  it,  too.  Father  was  over  to  Larkin's  shop  yester- 
terday,  and  Seth  was  in  there,  and  he  said  his  father 
was  going  to  give  the  Simpson  farm  to  the  one  of 
them  that  would  get  married  first;  and  I  guess  it 
will  be  Seth,  for  father  said  he  seemed  wide  awake." 

By  this  time  the  faces  of  Sally  and  Priscilla  gave 
unmistakable  evidence  of  internal- struggle,  yet  they 
plied  the  needle  with  increased  vigor. 

"  Remarkable  step  for  Mr.  Pendleton  —  hope  it  isn't 
a  bad  omen,"  anxiously  remarked  Madam  Jones. 

"A  good  start  for  whoever  gets  that  farm,"  says 
another,  while  giving  her  thread  another  twist,  when 
Patty  Potter  turned  the  conversation  by  remarking 
about  the  neat  pattern  in  hand. 

The  quilt  all  rolled,  two  of  the  company  volun- 
teered to  take  it  home  and  put  on  the  binding  ;  and 
as  the  wind  began  to  drift  the  light  snow,  all  hands 
started  for  home,  fearing  the  roads  would  be  blocked 
again  if  they  stopped  to  tea,  as  was  the  custom  on 
such  occasions. 


THE    MYSTERIOUS    ROOM. 


33 


"Mother,  did  you  say  anything  to  Patty  about 
Seth?^'  asked  Father  Briggs,  while  jogging  along 
home  in  the  old  yellow  sleigh. 

"  Xo  —  no  ;  there  was  no  need  of  it.  I  just  hinted 
about  the  prospect  there  was  of  our  having  some 
new  neighbors  on  the  Simpson  farm,  when  Hannah 
Nibbs,  she  always  knows  everything,  broke  right  in 
and  said  her  father  was  up  to  Larkin's,  you  know  he^s 
always  loafing  about  that  shop,  and  heard  Seth  tell 
the  whole  matter.  Just  think  —  he  had  to  go  and 
tell  after  charging  us  to  be  so  sly,  and  so  it's  all  out," 
replied  Mrs.  Briggs,  with  apparent  indignation. 

"  Perhaps  Hannah  would  like  to  skim  milk  in  the 
north  room  herself,"  said  Father  Briggs. 

"But  I  tell  you,  father,  Priscilla  and  Sally  did 
look  troubled  when  Hannah  shouted  that  out,"  added 
mother;  and  it  was  so  strange  that  Patty  Potter 
should  be  the  first  one  to  speak  and  turn  the  conver- 
sation by  admiring  the  neat  pattern  of  the  quilt." 


Homewai-d  from  Cynthia  Smith's  Quilting. 


34  LEGENDS  OF  OLD  BEDFOKD. 

"  Well,"  said  Father  Briggs,  giving  the  horse  a  cut 
with  the  whip,  "  I  shouldn't  wonder  if  Patty  had  the 
next  quilting  in  spite  of  that  irrepressible  Hannah 
Mbbs." 

' '  Now,  my  boy,  about  the  time  these  events  were  transpir- 
ing in  this  town,  the  first  movement  was  made  in  way  of 
organizing  a  temperance  society.  Rev.  Mr.  Whitford,  who 
was  in  the  habit  of  drinking  a  little  himself,  as  were  most  of 
the  people,  got  some  men  from  Boston,  I  think,  to  come  and 
talk  up  the  subject,  and  a  society  was  organized,  and  many 
signed  the  pledge;  but  drinking  was  not  looked  upon  with 
such  disdain  as  it  is  now,  and  some  of  the  first  people  would 
not  give  it  up.  Deacon  Jones,  in  whose  family  Patty  lived, 
entered  upon  the  temperance  work  with  a  will,  and,  in  fact, 
was  so  rigid,  that  he  thought  any  one  who  did  not  join  the 
society  was  worse  than  an  infidel.  People  nowadays  would 
more  generally  sympathize  with  him  in  his  new  departure. 
The  society  went  on  and  flourished.  They  had  meetings  quite 
often;  sometimes  the  minister  would  make  an  address,  and 
again  one  of  the  doctors  of  the  village.  Much  good  resulted 
from  that  first  movement,  and  I  think  there  has  been  a  tem- 
perance society  here  ever  since." 

"  Did  the  Pendletons  join  the  society?  "  inquired  the  boy. 

"No;  not  all  of  them,"  said  grandma,  "for  they  enjoyed 
strong  drink  now  and  then,  and  you  will  see  how  they  allowed 
the  habit  to  get  control  of  them." 

If  you  had  been  at  the  home  of  the  Pendletons  one 
afternoon  of  the  following  week,  you  would  have 
seen  the  boys  making  haste  with  their  chores,  and 
found  everything  done  up  before  sundown,  with 
a  plenty  of  wood  by  the  hearth  to  keep  up  the  fire 
through  the '  long  evening.  Seth  and  Saul  took  a 
hasty  supper,  and  then,  in  their  best  trim,  started  off 
for  the  village  to  attend  the  singing  school.  Seth's 
newly  tapped  brogans  had  been  well  covered  with 
beefs  tallow  and  lampblack,  which  greatly  improved 


THE    MYSTERIOUS    ROOM. 


35 


their  ordinary  condition,  and  to  his  mind  looked 
"  amazing  nice."  Seth  generally  liked  company,  but 
OH  this  evening  would  rather  have  been  left  alone  ; 
yet  Saul  was  ready  to  go  with  him,  although  not 
fully  realizing  the  condition  of  his  older  brother's 
mood ;  he  was  supposed  to  know  it  all  by  the  ardent, 
anxious  suitor,  who  even  regarded  his  brother  on 
this  evening  in  the  guise  of  a  rival. 


1741 
The  Old  School-house. 


The  old  school-house  was  torn  down  before  you  were  born ; 
it  stood  almost  in  the  road,  near  the  location  of  the  present 
one.  It  was  once  a  rude  dwelling;  the  only  door  was  on  the 
north  side.  The  furnishing  for  school  purposes  consisted  of 
rough  benches,  and  a  high  desk  for  the  master. 

In  that  house  the  singing  school  was  taught,  once 
each  week.  Seth  and  Saul  were  among  the  first  to 
appear  at  the  school-house  that  evening,  and  as  it  was 
their  first  appearance  of  the  season,  the  salutations 
extended  were  hearty,  and  to  some  would  have  been 
interesting ;  but  that  irrepressible  Hannah  Nibbs  had 
been  faithful  in  spreading  the  story  that  her  father 


36  LEGENDS  OF  OLD  BEDFORD. 

gathered  at  Larkin's  shop,  so  the  little  sly  notes  from 
the  boys,  and  the  shy  acts  of  the  girls,  were  under- 
stood by  Seth,  although  he  had  mingled  but  little  in 
the  society  of  young  people.  Among  the  different 
groups  standing  about  the  fire,  Seth  soon  spied  Patty 
and  Deacon  Jones.  The  inoffensive  deacon,  who  had 
an  eye  single  for  the  good  of  mankind,  happened,  to 
notice  Seth  and  Saul.  As  it  was  their  first  appear- 
ance at  the  school,  and  unusual  too,  his  heart  of 
sympathy  prompted  him  to  go  to  them  at  once,  and 
in  the  kindest  manner  give  them  a  welcome  to  the 
school ;  he  told  them  he  would  like  to  speak  with 
them  after  the  hour's  instruction.  The  deacon  had 
heard  some  notes  about  the  Simpson  farm,  but  had 
given  no  heed  to  them,  and  was  perfectly  innocent  of 
any  of  the  charges  being  brought  against  him  in  the 
minds  of  some  of  the  by-standers  and  whispered  from 
side  to  side,  one  voice  being  often  heard  above  the 
whisper,  to  the  amusement  of  many. 

"There,"  said  Hannah  Nibbs,  "I  did  have  faith 
in  Deacon  Jones,  and  his  prayers  always  did  me  good  ; 
but  if  he  will  stoop  to  help  Seth  Pendleton  get  a  wife, 
just  for  nothing  only  to  get  that  Simpson  farm,  I 
shall  lose  all  confidence  in  him  and  everybody  else 
that  belongs  to  the  church." 

"I  should  think  from  the  way  you  talk,"  said  a 
seat  companion  half  aloud,  "  that  you  wanted  control 
of  the  Simpson  house  yourself.  I'm  sure  /  would  n't 
marry  Seth  Pendleton  for  all  the  farms  in  town." 

"  Nor  I,"  exclaimed  Hannah,  as  she  hastily  opened 
her  singing  book  and  began  to  run  over  the  scale. 

There  was  a  good  deal  of  whispering  and  subdued 
merriment  through  the  session  of  the  school,  more 
than  usual,  and  the  order  was  none  too  good  at  any 


THE    MYSTERIOUS    ROOM. 


37 


session ;  yet  Seth,  revolving  the  cleacon^s  kind  words 
in  his  mind,  sat  through  the  hour  like  a  martyr  who 
was  under  sentence  and  awaiting  the  hour  of  torture. 
He  had  made  up  his  mind  that  Patty  was  his,  that 
the  deacon  had  given  evidence  of  his  approval  of  the 
whole  matter,  and  with  such  a  brilliant  prospect 
before  him  he  could  endure  all  the  annoyance  of  the 
whole  school. 


The  Singing  School. 

At  the  close  of  the  session,  Saul  stepped  out  and 
started  for  home,  glad  enough  to  again  be  free  and 
alone  ;  but  Seth  lingered  in  spite  of  the  jeers  of  the 
boys.  He  had  an  object  in  view,  and  was  determined 
to  accomplish  his  purpose.  A  wife  and  farm,  instead 
of  the  tedious  servitude  at  the  old  home  on  the  hill, 
were  objects  of  sufficient  value  to  inspire  courage  and 
determination  in  any  one  of  the  most  timid  nature 


38  LEGENDS  OF  OLD  BEDFORD. 

and  retiring  habit.  Presently  the  good  deacon  came 
up  and  said  to  Seth,  "  I  am  real  glad  that  you  have 
got  started  out,  and  I  hope  you  will  continue  to  come ; 
I  have  a  good  deal  of  feeling  for  you  all  up  there  on 
the  hill." 

Turning  about  and  finding  Patty  waiting  for  him 
to  go  home,  he  formally  introduced  her  to  Seth,  who 
smiled  as  never  before  ;  but  his  words  were  few  —  he 
was  too  full  for  utterance.  Patty,  who  was  innocent 
of  the  charges  brought  against  her  by  many  of  the 
school,  did  not  fail  to  drop  a  word  of  encouragement, 
as  she  had  caught  the  missionary  spirit  from  her 
friend  the  deacon. 

"Seth,"  said  Deacon  Jones,  "you  know  we  are 
forming  a  temperance  society  here,  and  we  want  you 
to  join  with  us," — a  subject  entirely  foreign  to  that 
which  occupied  the  mind  of  the  anxious  youth,  who 
tremblingly  assented  without  giving  it  a  thought, 
and  in  fact  hardly  grasping  the  idea. 

The  company  had  disappeared  before  the  lingerers 
were  aware  of  it,  and  Seth  mustered  courage  to  ask 
for  the  privilege  of  going  home  with  Patty.  This 
seemed  strange  to  her,  for  there  was  no  occasion  for 
such  civility  on  the  part  of  any  one ;  but  as  she  was 
anxious  to  help  on  the  temperance  reform,  and 
thought  it  might  be  pleasing  to  the  deacon  to  have 
Seth  walk  with  them,  she  did  not  refuse,  and  Seth 
Pendleton  had  never  seen  a  more  happy  hour.  The 
deacon,  being  hard  of  hearing,  had  not  caught  the 
words  of  Seth  when  asking  the  important  question, 
and  he  did  not  understand  whether  it  was  Patty  or 
himself  who  was  having  the  honor  of  the  escort ; 
neither  did  the  boys  and  girls  who  watched  the  pro- 
ceedings from  various  corners  and  hiding  places. 


THE    MYSTERIOUS    ROOM.  39 

A  kind  invitation  from  the  good  deacon  to  Seth  to 
come  down  and  spend  the  evening  sent  him  home  as 
happy  as  he  ever  went  in  his  life.  First  he  ran, 
and  then  he  walked,  all  the  time  invoking  blessings 
upon  the  head  of  Mr.  Briggs,  and  promising  himself 
in  the  stillness  of  that  winter  evening  to  always 
remember  his  good  adviser,  and  vowing  that  he  would 
follow  him  in  every  matter. 

Saul  had  reached  home  a  little  before  him,  and 
there  was  a  real  bustle  in  the  old  house  when  Seth 
came  in.  Neighbor  Briggs  and  wife  Lucy  were  in- 
formed of  the  success  of  the  evening  as  soon  as  the 
duties  of  the  following  day  would  permit.  Seth  soon 
blacked  his  brogans  again  and  went  to  the  deacon's  to 
pass  the  evening,  and  continued  to  go,  and  soon 
became  a  member  of  the  temperance  society,  although 
Hannah  Nibbs  did  say,  "  He  won't  keep  the  pledge, 
and  he  is  an  awkward  fellow,  and  I  don't  see  what 
Deacon  Jones  is  thinking  about.  I  thought  he  was  a 
more  sensible  man  than  to  advise  a  good,  innocent 
girl  like  Patty  Potter  to  receive  the  attentions  of  a 
clownish  fellow  like  Seth  Pendleton." 

Here  grandma,  realizing  this  kind  of  talk  might  not  be  help- 
ful to  the  youth,  stopped,  and  said,  "My  boy,  you  now  see 
how  easy  it  is  for  perfectly  innocent  people,  with  the  best  of 
motives,  to  have  the  appearance  of  doing  evil,  and  to  be  con- 
demned when  they  are  not  guilty.  Deacon  Jones  was  only 
trying  to  cheer  and  aid  Seth  and  promote  the  temperance 
cause,  when  Seth  thought  he  was  gaiuing  the  good  man's  aid 
in  securing  Patty  for  a  wife,  and  thus  making  sure  of  the 
Simpson  farm.  There  is  one  thing  that  I  would  like  to  have 
you  remember,  and  that  is,  the  determination  with  which  Seth 
went  about  this  enterprise,  and  try  to  put  as  much  energy  into 
your  efforts,  although  of  a  very  different  nature." 

Only  a  few  months  passed  before  there  was  a  quilt- 


40  LEGENDS  OF  OLD  BEDFORD. 

ing  at  Deacon  Jones'.  Hannah  Nibbs  was  not  there. 
^^A  little  indisposed,"  said  her  mother  when  asked 
why  Hannah  didn't  come,  while  making  free  use  of 
the  snuff,  her  only  reliable  solace,  that  always  kept 
her  nerves  calm  at  a  quilting. 

A  general  clearing  up  at  the  Simpson  farm  told  all 
the  neighbors  that  the  taxes  would  be  set  to  Seth 
Pendleton  the  coming  year ;  and  so  it  was.  Patty 
Potter  was  well  located  with  Mr.  Seth  Pendleton  at 
the  Simpson  house  before  the  blueberries  were  ripe  in 
the  three-cornered  lot,  where  she  met  her  friends  and 
took  pleasure  in  saying,  "  You  are  welcome  to  all  you 
can  pick  in  our  lot."  Hannah  soon  learned  to 
address  Patty  as  Mrs.  Pendleton,  and  treated  her 
with  much  respect. 

This  change  did  not  add  much  to  the  happiness  of 
the  Pendletons.  Saul,  Sally  and  Priscilla  declared 
they  would  punish  Seth  some  day. 

"  Just  see  what  a  spirit,  my  boy,  and  it  is  such  as  we  often 
see,  and  what  I  want  you  to  guard  against  —  that  is,  a  desire 
to  ruin  or  make  uncomfortable  any  one  who  succeeds  in  get- 
ting what  we  would  like  ourselves  but  fail  to  obtain." 

Mr.  and  Mrs.  Briggs  were  soon  invited  to  drink  tea 
at  the  Simpson  place,  and  a  better  cup  of  tea  or  a 
better  spider  cake  they  both  agreed  they  never  ate, 
while  they  hoped  Patty  would  never  regret  the  step. 


THE    MYSTERIOUS    ROOM.  41 

FOURTH   EVENING. 

?BOUT  the  time  that  Seth  Pendleton  and  his 
bride   Patty  took  possession,    as   the   lawful 


owners  of  the  Simpson  farm,  Rev.  Mr.  Jones 
settled  on  the  farm  recently  purchased  of  the  Good- 
nough  heirs  ;  he  cleared  away  the  house  and  barn,  and 
began  to  replace  them  with  as  fine  a  set  of  farm 
buildings  as  the  town  afforded.  Mrs.  Briggs  often 
remarked  to  her  family  and  to  callers,  that  she 
could  not  see  what  Parson  Jones  was  thinking  of, — to 
come  to  town,  buy  a  piece  of  real  estate  and  erect  fine 
buildings  when  he  was  a  widower;  but,  Mr.  Briggs, 
who  was  famous  for  settling  all  kinds  of  affairs,  from 
a  large  estate  to  a  family  quarrel,  when  overhearing 
his  good  wife,  would  decide  this  difficult  question 
by  saying,  "  There  are  a  plenty  who  would  be  glad  to 
preside  in  that  new  house."  It  was  at  this  mid-sum- 
mer season  that  a  shadow  came  over  the  Briggs  home. 
Mrs.  Briggs  took  a  severe  cold  in  the  early  spring, 
and  in  spite  of  all  the  faithful  efforts  of  the  doctors 
of  the  village,  together  with  the  best  of  nursing  from 
her  devoted  husband  and  the  good  neighbors,  all  of 
whom  were  strongly  attached  to  her,  she  went  into  a 
rapid  decline,  and  on  the  last  day  of  July  she  passed 
from  her  home  and  family. 

Strange  it  seems  to  us  that  one  so  much  needed  in 
her  family,  and  in  the  community  so  endeared,  should 
be  thus  early  summoned  from  earth. 

"  My  child,  you  must  learn  that  God's  ways  are  best,  and  if 
we  cannot  sea  it  at  the  time,  we  must  have  faith  in  him  and 
his  promises  and  know  he  has  told  us,  '  He  doeth  all  things 
well.' " 


42  LEGENDS  OF  OLD  BEDFORD. 

The  neighbors  were  very  attentive  to  Mr.  Briggs 
and  full  of  sympathy  for  him  in  his  lonely  condition, 
and  it  is  true  they  went  so  far  as  openly  to  speak  of 
the  matter  at  a  sewing  meeting  held  at  Deacon 
Sprague's  in  the  following  September. 

The  ladies  there  assembled,  representing  many  of 
the  families  of  the  village,  agreed  that  the  Briggs 
home  must  be  very  lonely,  and  that  Hannah  Nibbs, 
who,  by  the  way,  had  gone,  as  she  claimed,  "  out  of 
pure  sympathy,'^  to  keep  house  for  the  family,  was 
not  the  one  for  the  place.  She  did  not  know  how  to 
manage  boys  at  all,  and  George  and  Josiah  began  to 
show  the  loss  of  their  mother  already.  While  the 
conversation  was  at  its  height,  Dolly  Sprague,  the 
deacon's  daughter,  companion  and  housekeeper,  who 
was  entertaining  the  sewing  circle,  came  in  with  her 
span  clean  apron  fully  spread  and  announced  that  tea 
was  ready.  It  was  quite  noticeable  that  Sally  and 
Priscilla  Pendleton  did  little  during  the  afternoon 
but  listen  to  the  conversation  about  the  Briggs 
family. 

Tea  over,  and  a  committee  chosen  to  pack  the  box 
that  was  to  be  sent  out  among  the  Indians,  the  others 
hastened  home.  The  "  Pendleton  girls,"  as  they  were 
called  by  the  townfolks,  took  a  short  cut  over  the 
hill,  down  "Love  Lane,''  by  the  Briggs  house,  and 
just  dropped  in  to  call  on  Hannah  Nibbs  and  inquire 
after  the  household. 

"Why  didn't  you  go  to  the  sewing  meeting  at 
Dolly  Sprague's  ?  "  said  Priscilla. 

"Why  didn't  I  ?  "  replied  Hannah,  "how  could  I  ? 
You  know  I  only  came  here  out  of  sympathy,  and  I 
tell  you  here  is  missionary  work  enough  to  be  done. 
I   don't   know   but   my  sympathy  will  give  out,  for 


THE    MYSTERIOUS    ROOM.  43 

these  boys  do  require  so  much  mending,  and  to  keep 
them  fed  is  a  difficult  task.  But  when  I  remember 
their  poor  mother,  I  am  so  full  of  sympathy  that  I 
stay  on,  and  while  I  am  here  the  Indians  and  every 
other  savage  will  have  to  get  along  without  me." 

These  remarks  were  made  with  an  air  of  conceit 
that  seemed  to  show  that  Hannah  thought  she  had 
the  full  control  of  the  Briggs  house.  As  the  Pendle- 
ton girls  rose  to  go,  Hannah  said,  "  I  don't  think  over- 
much of  Dolly  Sprague,  for  I  hear  she  pretends  to 
sympathize  with  this  poor  afflicted  family ;  but  she 
never  comes  here,  and  I  mean  she  never  shall  have  the 
chance,  though  I  guess  she  would  like  to." 

"Yes,"  replied  tlie  younger  of  the  Fendletons, 
"Miss   D0II5       J  ^T  kindly  of   the  family  this 

afternoon,  and  I  presu.  :  would  be  ready  to  do  for 
them,  only  you  are  here,  i  she  wouldn't  want  to 
interfere  with  your  affairs." 

"  She'd  better  not,  or  any  one  else  as  long  as  I  am 
here,"  replied  Hannah,  with  a  toss  of  her  head  that 
seemed  to  imply,  what  Hannah  Nibbs  don't  know  is 
of  little  use  to  any  one. 

Early  in  her  stay  at  the  Briggs  home,  Miss  Nibbs 
claimed  to  have  done  invaluable  service  by  success- 
fully warning  off  the  rats  that  infested  the  house  and 
were  extremely  destructive.  In  this,  as  in  many 
ways,  she  applied  what  she  had  seen  her  mother 
practice.  She  went  through  the  house,  above  and 
below,  beating  a  tin  pan  with  a  cream  stick  most  vio- 
lently, thus  calling  the  attention  of  the  whole  rat 
family,  and  shouting,  "  Leave  this  house,  leave  this 
house ;  go  over  to  Dr.  Preston's,  go  over  to  Dr.  Pres- 
ton's." At  that  time  she  entertained  most  unfriendly 
feelings  towards  the  doctor  of  the  town,  so  she  tried 


44 


LEGENDS    OF    OLD    BEDFORD. 


to  perform  double  service  by  this  peculiar  warning  — 
to  rid  the  Briggs  family  of  a  great  annoyance  and  to 
lodge  the  enemy  at  the  home  of  the  town  physician. 


Hannah  warned  away  tlie  rats. 

Mr.  Briggs  and  his  boys  suffered  on  through  the 
fall  and  winter,  while  the  pretended  sympathy  of 
Hannah  was  sufficiently  strong  to  keep  her  at  her 
chosen  post  of  duty ;  yet  every  week,  when  paid  her 
regular  compensation  by  Mr.  Briggs,  she  would  say, 
"  Kow,  Mr.  Briggs,  you  know  this  'two  and  three- 
pence' is  not  what  keeps  me  here,  for  it  is  nothing 
but  sympathy  that  tempts  me  to  leave  my  home  and 
take  the  place  of  poor  Mrs.  Briggs  ;  she  was  a  blessed 
good  neighbor  — "  at  this  point  she  always  drew 
out  a  faded  red  and  yellow  homespun  handkerchief, 
and  wiped  the  tears  that  flowed  from  her  large  gray 
eyes  as  easily  as  rain  falls  in  April,  while  she  made 
free  use  of  her  snuff-box. 

A  week  before  "March  meeting,"  there  came  a 
fresh  fall  of  snow,  and  Sally  Pendleton  had  made  up 
her  mind  that  she  would  start  out  on  a  little  mission. 


THE    MYSTERIOUS    KOOM.  45 

She  tripped  down  to  call  on  Hannah,  and  Mr.  Briggs 
as  well;  but  Hannah,  not  seeming  to  be  very  agreea- 
ble, was  soon  left  in  the  room  alone,  and  Sally,  with 
the  two  boys,  went  to  call  Mr.  Briggs,  who  was  in  the 
lot  getting  wood.  Sally  had  an  errand  with  him,  she 
said. 

"  Smart  errand,"  said  Hannah,  as  soon  as  they  were 
out  of  hearing.  I  guess  she  won't  make  out  much, 
although  they  have  got  money  up  there;  for  Mr. 
Briggs  thinks  more  of  himself  than  to  take  one  of 
them  gals  to  fill  Lucy's  place." 

Hannah's  whole  conduct  indicated  greater  feai- 
than  her  words  would  imply.  In  response  to  her 
call  for  tea,  Mr.  Briggs  and  the  boys  came  in,  pleas- 
antly chatting,  and  Hannah  overheard  in  the  conver- 
sation, "  Can  I  go  too,  father  ? "  from  Josiah,  the 
younger  of  the  boys  ;  the  reply  she  did  not  hear. 

She  poured  the  tea  with  much  nervousness,  and 
seemed  to  have  but  little  appetite.  "Got  a  fresh 
cold  hanging  out  that  washing;  nothing  but  sym- 
pathy would  tempt  me  to  do  it,"  said  Miss  Nibbs, 
emphatically,  with  her  face  drawn  down  in  a  manner 
that  foretold  the  usual  shower,  while  she  fumbled  in 
her  pocket,  which  was  a  false  one  tied,  under  her 
skirt,  for  the  ever  ready  handkerchief  of  rainbow  hue. 

Before  retiring  for  the  night,  Mr.  Briggs  got  out 
his  best  boots,  brushed  them,  and  took  "  a  clean 
shave,"  preparatory  to  an  early  start  on  the  following 
morning.  Hannah,  who  was  at  a  critical  point  in  her 
stocking,  "setting  the  heel,"  occasionally  turned  up 
one  eye,  and  having  endured  it  as  long  as  she  could, 
burst  out  by  saying,  "I  suppose  you  are  going  off 
with  Sally  Pendleton.  Now,  Mr.  Briggs,  you  know 
I  came  here  out  of  sympathy,  and  I  feel  it  to  be  my 


46  LEGENDS  OF  OLD  BEDFORD. 

duty  to  tell  you  what  everybody  says, —  that  Sally 
Pendleton  means  to  step  into  Lucy  Briggs'  shoes, 
and  your  poor  wife  not  nine  months  dead.  I  wouldn't 
have  thought  it ;  I  wouldn't  have  thought  it ;  no,  I 
wouldn't ! " 

When  Miss  Nibbs  recovered  from  her  hysterical 
attack,  Mr.  Briggs,  feeling  disgusted  with  the  con- 
duct of  his  housekeeper,  gently  said,  ''  Miss  Nibbs,  I 
believe  I  paid  you  last  Saturday,  didn't  I  ?  " 

"Yes,"  she  stammered,  "but  it  ain't  money  that 
keeps  me  here,  it's  sympathy  ;  and  to  see  you  go  off 
in  this  way  makes  me  feel  dreadfully  for  poor  Mrs. 
Briggs'  sake ;  her  memory  is  precious  to  me  if  it  ain't 
to  other  folks."  The  reply,  in  faltering  accents,  was 
followed  by  the  ever  ready  shower  that  burst  forth  in 
copious  drops. 

Mr.  Briggs  was  a  man  of  but  few  words,  yet  he 
did  venture  to  make  one  request,  which  was,  that 
breakfast  might  be  ready  early,  as  he  was  going  to 
Boston  in  the  morning  and  would  like  to  take  the 
trip  in  a  sleigh,  the  roads  being  best  before  mid-day. 
Nothing  more  was  heard  until  early  dawn,  when  Mr. 
Briggs  was  stirring  the  coals  and  the  boys  were  has- 
tening around  to  aid  in  the  chores. 

When  Miss  Nibbs  appeared,  it  was  evident  she  was 
suffering  from  a  severe  cold ;  yet  she  aided  in  prepar- 
ing breakfast,  all  the  time  keeping  watchful  eyes  on 
the  movements  of  Mr.  Briggs  as  he  made  the  needful 
preparations  and  gave  orders  to  the  boys  about  the 
work  of  the  day.  Mr.  Briggs  hadn't  been  long  out 
of  the  yard  before  Hannah  ventured  to  ask  Josiak 
which  way  his  father  had  gone.  On  finding  that  it 
was  towards  the  Pendletons,  she  came  into  the  house 
somewhat  rudely,  and  said  half  alond,  "  Up  the  road, 


THE    MYSTERIOUS    KOOM.  47 

sure  enough, —  that  ain't  the  way  to  Boston.  He's  a 
liar  with  all  the  rest ;  yes,  he  is.  I  will  tell  Mr. 
Whitford  before  noon,  I  will.  Yes,  he's  a  liar  and  a 
member  of  the  church  too.  I'll  never  go  to  commun- 
ion again  as  long  as  he  lives,  I  won't.  When  he  gets 
home  he'll  come  pretty  short,  I  guess,  for  I  won't 
cook  anything  to-day.  I'm  almost  sick  with  a  cold, 
all  from  hanging  out  them  clothes  yesterday.  Who 
would  do  all  this  for  sympathy  but  me  ?  " 

"  Sally,"  squeaked  out  a  roguish  youngster,  who 
had  become  disgusted  with  the  conduct  of  the  house- 
keeper, "  there  she  goes  now ; "  and  the  passing 
sleigh,  containing  Mr.  Briggs  and  Sally  Pendleton, 
just  met  the  eyes  of  Miss  Nibbs,  as  the  bells  jingled 
by  the  door  on  the  way  to  Boston. 

'^Just  as  I  expected.  Sally  Pendleton  was  over 
here  yesterday  and  teased  Mr.  Briggs  to  take  her  to 
Boston.  Just  as  likely  as  not  she  is  going  after  her 
wedding  fixin's," 

She  threw  herself  into  the  rocking-chair  and  con- 
tinued the  impassioned  soliloquy  :  ^'  What  treatment ! 
When  I  came  here  and  left  mother  alone  with  the 
girls,  of  course  they  were  lonesome  after  father's 
death,  just  as  much  as  Mr.  Briggs  was  after  burying 
his  wife.  I  won't  stay  any  longer.  I'll  pack  up  my 
things  and  go  right  straight  home,  and  when  he 
comes  back  he  may  get  his  own  supper  or  go  without. 
I  guess  he'll  have  to.  Who  will  get  it  for  him  and 
these  hungry  boys  ?  " 

-'  Sally ! "  cried  out  the  same  roguish  voice  from 
behind  the  entry  door. 

"  Sally  ! "  shouted  Miss  Nibbs,  as  she  rocked  out 
of  her  chair,  "  and  so  she  may.  I  guess  she  won't 
show  you  much  sympathy  though." 


48 


LEGENDS    OF    OLD    BEDFORD. 


Miss  Nibbs  left  the  Briggs  Home. 


A  few  moments  passed  and  Miss  Nibbs  was  seen 
with  carpet  bag  in  hand,  headed  for  her  home,  and 
the  house  left  without  a  woman's  voice  or  work. 
The  boys,  having  a  very  good  understanding  of  culin- 
ary affairs,  had  a  meal  prepared  for  their  father  and 
the  chores  all  done  when  he  reached  home  in  the  early 
evening.  Their  account  of  the  departure  of  Miss 
Nibbs  seemed  to  move  Mr.  Briggs  but  little,  for  he 
was  a  cool,  self-possessed  man,  of  few  words  and 
decided  action. 

The  way  Sally  Pendleton  happened  to  go  to  Boston 
with  Mr.  Briggs  was  this,  although  she  may  have  had 
other  intentions ;  but  Mr.  Briggs  was  strongly  forti- 
fied against  all  designs  of  a  serious  nature.  That  he 
was  going  to  drive  to  Boston  was  known  by  the  Pen- 
dletons,  and  Sally  made  bold  to  ask  for  the  privilege 


THE    MYSTERIOUS    ROOM.  49 

of  riding  with  him,  which  he  could  not  very  well  re- 
fuse after  all  they  had  done  for  him  during  the  ill- 
ness of  Mrs.  Briggs.  That  she  rode  down  and  back 
was  all  the  story.  Mr.  Briggs  was  well  pleased,  on 
entering  the  house,  to  find  that  his  two  boys  had  as- 
sumed the  charge  of  affairs.  As  soon  as  tea  was  over, 
he  sent  G-eorge  to  the  Nibbs  house  with  the  portion  of 
a  week's  pay  that  was  due  Miss  Hannah,  and  also  his 
sincere  gratitude  for  all  her  sympathy  had  prompted 
her  to  do  for  him  and  his  family. 

"With  the  youthful  housekeepers  in  charge,  I  will  leave  the 
Briggs  family  for  the  present  and  tell  you  more  of  them  some 
other  time,  said  grandma,"  in  closing  her  story  for  the  evening* 


FIFTH  EVENING. 


^^^)|?j>S  you,  and  the  young  people  generally,  know  but 
-'''''  little  about  the  good  times  we  had  when  we  were 
yoimg,  I  will  try  to  give  you  a  little  account  of  social 
life  among  us.  There  were  "Tea  Drinkings,"  which 
were  invited  parties ;  but  as  a  general  thing  we  felt  free  to 
start  out  and  spend  the  day  with  a  neighbor  without  any  invi- 
tation or  notice.  Then  there  were  the  "Quiltings,"  of  which 
I  have  given  you  an  idea;  the  "  Applebees  "  and  "Huskings," 
which  were  harvest  gatherings  when  the  gentlemen  went;  the 
"Wood-Cuttings,"  when  the  young  men  gathered  at  the  vil- 
lage pastor's  and  cut  up  dozens  of  cords  of  wood,  hauled  by 
parishioners  as  a  part  of  his  annual  salary.  The  latter  were 
anticipated  with  a  deal  of  pleasure,  for  quantities  of  dough- 
nuts were  prepared  to  go  with  the  cider  for  lunch.  The  socia- 
bility of  the   occasion  more  than  balanced  the   labor.     We 


50  LEGENDS  OF  OLD  BEDFORD. 

always  had  a  plenty  of  good  ham  of  our  own  curing  that  we 
could  cut  a  slice  from  at  any  time,  and  our  good  home-made 
sausages  we  packed  in  meal  and  kept  until  far  into  the  sum 
mer;  and  as  for  butter  and  cheese,  we  made  these  ourselves,  and 
so  felt  it  was  good  enough  for  any  one  who  might  drop  in  to 
spend  the  day;  so  we  were  always  prepared  and  felt  at  ease 
when  company  came. 

The  Mbbs  sisters  had  a  "Tea Drinking,"  an  invited 
party,  in  honor  of  the  engagement  of  one  of  them  to 
a  "spruce  young  man  from  Boston."  He  had  kept 
the  school  the  winter  before,  and  in  his  boarding 
around,  as  was  the  custom,  had  taken  a  fancy  to  Han- 
hah's  youngest  sister,  and  this  party  was  the  occasion 
when  the  engagement  was  made  known,  although 
Hannah  had  not  failed  to  previously  hint  at  the 
matter.  "Mother  Nibbs,"  as  she  was  familiarly 
known,  had  on  her  best  mourning  cap,  with  broad 
strings  flying  at  either  side,  and  was  located  in  her 
chair  in  the  corner.  Her  hands  kept  up  a  continual 
struggle  over  the  blue  sock  that  she  was  knitting, 
only  halting  to  take  a  pinch  of  snuff  and  replace  her 
needle  in  the  cob  that  she  had  fastened  to  her  right 
side  by  the  string  of  her  apron,  this  being  her 
arrangement,  "  sheath,"  as  she  called  it,  for  fastening 
her  work. 

"The  gals  are  doing  the  whole  thing  this  time, 
going  to  show  what  they  know,  I  guess.  I  have  tried 
to  have  them  capable.  They  say  I  must  sit  here. 
Well,  I  don't  care,  I  should  like  a  little  time  to  rest 
and  meditate,"  said  Mrs.  Nibbs,  while  indulging  in 
another  pinch  of  snuff.  "It's  high  time  the  gals 
was  trying  their  hand  at  things,  for  'Becca  is  going 
to  be  married,  you  know.  Lor',  of  course  you  know 
it,  for   that's   what  this   great  fuss  is    all  about.     I 


THE    MYSTERIOUS    ROOM.  51 

don't  suppose  tliey  want  me  to  say  anything  abovit  it 
though ;  but  they  needn't  think  I'm  going  to  sit 
perched  up  here  and  hold  my  tongue,"  continued 
Mrs.  Nibbs  ;  "  that  hain't  been  my  habit  all  my  life, 
you  know." 

By  this  time  Hannah,  who  had  been  evidently 
enjoying  a  fit  of  the  sulks,  appeared  from  another 
room,  and  at  once  entered  into  conversation,  all  the 
time  turning  a  look  that  half  betrayed  her  feelings 
to  Dolly  Sprague,  who  had  arrived  among  the  first  of 
the  party.  Kow,  Dolly,  like  a  good,  faithful  daugh- 
ter of  a  pious  deacon,  entertained  no  unkind  feelings 
towards  Hannah,  although  she  knew  very  well  that 
her  good  humor  was  not  reciprocated.  While  we 
should  expect  that  Hannah  would  welcome  each  in 
the  room  before  seating  herself,  we  must  overlook 
this  lack  of  courtesy  in  her,  by  remembering  that 
she  was  not  a  little  disturbed  in  her  feelings  at 
present,  and  did  not  entertain  the  kindest  regard 
for  Dolly,  any  more  than  she  did  for  Sally  Pendle- 
ton. To  shake  hands  with  all  but  Miss  Sprague 
would  be  too  much  of  a  display  of  feelings ;  so 
she  slyly  located  herself,  apparently  unnoticed  by 
many  who  were  busy  in  conversation. 

At  this  point.  Mother  Nibbs  shouted, —  being  deaf 
she  could  not  properly  pitch  her  voice,  — "  'Becca, 
where  on  earth  are  Sally  and  Priscilla  Pendleton. 
Didn't  you  ask  them  ?     Of  course  you  did." 

The  efforts  of  Rebecca  to  quietly  suppress  her 
mother  were  of  no  avail,  for  she  would  finish  her 
remark  and  then  settled  quietly  down  in  meditation, 
as  she  called  it.  Hannah,  whose  face  indicated  a 
rush  of  blood  to  her  head,  exclaimed,  "  I  guess  they 
think   they  have  other  business  to  attend  to;    most 


52  LEGENDS  OF  OLD  BEDFORD. 

likely  they  are  making  Sally's  wedding  fixings.  I 
suppose  she  bought  them  when  she  went  to  Boston 
with  Mr.  Briggs." 

With  this  remark  from  Hannah,  the  drift  of  con- 
versation was  entirely  changed,  and  centred,  as  you 
must  suppose,  on  the  subject  —  the  marriage  of  Sally 
Pendleton. 

"What's  that  you  say,  Hannah  ?"  exclaimed 
Mother  Nibbs,  "Sally  Pendleton  going  to  be  mar- 
ried ;  to  who,  do  tell  ?  " 

Hannah's  face  revealed  the  whole  story,  and  it  was 
useless  for  her  to  try  to  conceal  anything  in  regard  to 
her  sudden  departure  from  the  Briggs  family,  while 
it  had  thus  far  been  the  general  impression  that  Mr. 
Briggs  was  practising  economy. 

"  Why,  can't  they  get  along  alone  until  haying  ?  " 
said  one.  Such  was  the  general  understanding  of  the 
change  until  this  moment,  when  Hannah's  words  and 
actions  quite  plainly  revealed  that  her  unexpected 
removal  was  not  of  a  very  pleasant  nature. 

"  Is  it  Mr.  Briggs  ? "  voiced  the  senior  Nibbs. 
"I'll  warrant  it,  and  that's  what  started  our  Han- 
nah off.  I  know  well  enough.  Hannah,  why  didn't 
you  tell  us  when  you  came  home,  instead  of  laying  it 
to  the  boys,  and  saying  you  had  no  more  sympathy 
for  them  ?  " 

Here  Dolly  Sprague,  realizing  the  peculiar  situa- 
tion of  Hannah,  turned  the  conversation  by  remark- 
ing, "It  was  a  familiar  saying  of  my  mother,  'That 
the  chaff  always  goes  before  the  wheat,'  and  I  think 
"we  must  come  to  the  conclusion,  from  what  we  have 
learned  this  afternoon,  that  Sally  is  the  wheat." 

"  And  you  mean  to  insinuate  that  I  am  the  chaff, 
Dolly  Sprague,  do  you  ?"  said  Hannah. 


THE    MYSTERIOUS    ROOM. 


53 


^^Not  at  all,"  was  the  pleasant  reply  of  Miss 
Spragiie,  whose  face  apparently  indicated  '^her  regret 
at  having  so  innocently  wounded  her  neighbor's  feel- 
ings, who  was  not  very  friendly  towards  her  and  had 
not  been  for  some  months.  ^'  I  was  about  to  say  that 
I  presume  Mr.  Briggs  feels  so  lonely  that  he  is  going 
to  try  to  fill  Lucy's  place.  I  can't  blame  him ;  I 
thought  the  family  very  fortunate  in  securing  the 
services  of  Miss  Nibbs,  who  is  so  efficient  in  a  house- 
hold. I  didn't  know  you  had  resigned  your  position 
until  Mrs.  Johnson  just  told  me." 

"  Yes,"  replied  Hannah,  in  a  tone  somewhat  sub- 
dued ;  "  I  left  there  some  weeks  since,  and  I  had  a 
good  reason  for  it  too.  Sally  came  down  and  coaxed 
Mr.  Briggs  to  take  her  to  Boston  ;  I  don't  know  for 
what,  yet  I  have  my  opinion,  and  after  all  I  have 
done  for  Mr.  Briggs  and  those  motherless  boys  in 
their  affliction,  I  thought  it  rather  unkind  treatment ; 
and  so  I  left,  and  Sally  can  go  there  and  keep  house. 
I  guess  things  won't  be  as  tidy  as  they  were  when  I 
left,  if  she  does  the  work.  I  don't  know  but  that's 
what's  keeping  them  this  afternoon,  for  'Becca  says 
she  asked  them.  I  didn't  have  anything  to  do  about 
it ;  this  is  'Becca's  narty.  If  she'd  asked  me  to  help 
her,  I  would  have  snubbed  them  for  once  anyhow." 

Here  the  subject  was  dropped,  for  Sally  and  Pris- 
cilla  Pendleton  came  in  apparent  haste  around  the 
corner,  and  were  greeted  by  'Becca,  who  had  not 
imbibed  any  of  Hannah's  feelings  towards  them. 
Their  apology  revealed  the  fact  that  their  father  had 
been  taken  ill,  and  they  came,  very  reluctantly,  after 
much  urging  from  their  mother,  who  felt  sure  the 
attack  was  not  serious. 

On  learning  this  bit  of  news,  Hannah,  beckoned  to 


64 


LEGENDS    OF    OLD    BEDFORD. 


Mrs.  Jolmson,  who  followed  her  into  the  well-room, 
as  they  called  a  side  apartment,  and  there  poured 
forth  another  of  her  impassioned  speeches. 

"  What  if  Mr.  Pendleton  should  die  ?  but  he  is  so 
tough  and  contrary  that  he  will  stand  it  one  while,  I 
guess ;  but  of  course  they  would  like  him  out  of  the 
way.  How  I  would  like  to  get  into  that  room.  If 
he  should  die,  wouldn't  Seth,  Saul  and  the  gals  have 
a  good  lot  of  funds  !  I  don't  believe  but  that's  what 
Mr.  Briggs  is  thinking  of.  Well,  if  he  gets  Sally 
and  a  heap  of  money,  he  won't  fill  Lucy's  place. 
What  a  good  woman  s      was  !  " 

A  call  from  Miss  Rebecca  to  tea  broke  up  the 
little  groups  and  discussions,  and  all  hands  were  soon 
seated  at  the  table,  which  Rebecca  had  spread  with 
all  the  nice  things  that  she  could  prepare ;  but  the 
good  time  was  suddenly  disturbed  by  Saul,  who  came 
running  at  full  speed  for  his  sisters  and  exclaimed, 
"Dad's  awful  bad  ;  I  guess  he'll  go  this  time." 


Home  of  Deacon  Sprague. 


THE    MYSTERIOUS    ROOM.  56 

After  the  "  girls  "  had  gone;  the  conversation  natu- 
rally turned  to  the  prospects  of  a  change  at  the  Pen- 
dleton home.  Sympathy,  mingled  with  indignation, 
was  freely  expressed,  when  Dolly  Sprague,  in  her 
characteristic  good  spirit,  feelingly  said,  "Let  the 
result  be  what  it  may,  it  is  God's  doings,  and  although 
it  may  be  marvellous  in  our  eyes,  it  is  right." 

Dolly  was  familiar  with  the  Scriptures,  and  was 
never  at  a  loss  to  find  a  passage  to  meet  any  emer- 
gency, although  she  would  not  always  give  the  exact 
wording.  Mother  Nibbs  had  by  this  time  succeeded 
in  learning  the  cause  of  the  sudden  departure  of  the 
Pendletons,  and  gave  expression  to  thoughts  which 
many,  less  inclined  to  talk,  would  have  suppressed. 

"I  do  wonder  if  Parson  Whitford  has  been  sent 
for.  I  should  think  it  would  be  awful  for  Mr.  Pen- 
dleton to  die  just  as  he  is.  Who  will  dare  to  go  into 
that  room  ?  Poor  old  man  !  how  he  will  hate  to  leave 
that  key,  and  them  children  are  so  ignorant ;  and  if 
they  get  a  lot  of  money  they  won't  know  how  to 
spend  it.  But  there  is  Mr.  Briggs,  and  they  all  think 
he  is  perfect.  I  suppose  he  can  settle  the  matter  for 
them  ;  and  if  he  marries  Sally,  as  Hannah  says  he  is 
going  to,  the  whole  affair  will  work  well." 

This  soliloquy  of  Mother  JSTibbs  was  not  fully 
appreciated  by  the  guests,  as  it  was  directed  to  no 
one  in  particular  and  interspersed  with  sips  of  the 
tea  and  several  pinches  of  snuff,  for  when  Mrs.  Nibbs 
was  excited,  she  used  her  solace  most  freely,  even  at 
her  meals. 

Comments  on  the  superiority  of  quince  preserve 
and  "  'lection  cake,"  were  freely  made,  and  the  pecu- 
liar fitness  of  Eebecca  for  the  wife  of  a  school-master 
was   hinted   at   by  Mrs.   Johnson,  and  received  the 


56  LEGENDS  OF  OLD  BEDFORD. 

assent  of  the  whole  party.  This  school  master  was 
one  of  the  many  who  had  met  with  a  rebuff  at  the  Pen- 
dleton's when  seeking  the  affection  of  Priscilla,  but  had 
received  a  welcome  at  the  Nibbs  home  from  the  very 
flower  of  the  family,  Miss  Rebecca,  or  'Becca,  as  she 
was  called  more  familiarly.  She  was  a  very  different 
person  from  her  older  sister,  partaking  more  of  the 
nature  of  her  father,  who  had  recently  died,  than  of 
her  mother,  who,  notwithstanding  her  peculiarities, 
was  a  good,  kind  woman,  and  a  faithful  friend  and 
neighbor. 


SIXTH  EVENING. 


T  was  a  cold  spring  day,  one  of  those  chilly  days 
of  May,  when  a  fire  is  as  needful  for  comfort  as 
5>J  in  mid-winter,  that  a  company  of  the  farmers  had 
congregated  in  Larkin's  shop  and  were  having  a  good 
chat,  such  as  the  people  of  an  old-fashioned  town 
heartily  enjoy  when  the  weather  does  not  admit  of 
out-door  work.  Several  of  the  company  were  of  the 
group  who  happened  to  be  present  when  Seth  Pendle- 
ton got  the  taps  put  on  his  only  brogans.  A  new 
associate  was  a  round-faced  man  who  was  busy  at  his 
post  of  duty;  he  was  closely  shaven,  save  a  few 
gray  bristles  on  his  neck,  suggestive  of  stray  brush 
about  the  stone  wall  of  a  barren  pasture,  while  a 
huge  wart  on  one  cheek,  with  another  somewhat 
smaller  nestling  by  the  side  of  his  Roman  nose, 
reminded  one  of  the  boulders   so   common   on   neg- 


THE    MYSTERIOUS    KOOM.  57 

lected  grounds.  Isaac  Fuller,  better  known  as  Ike 
Fuller,  was  standing  by  and  seemed  to  be  the  chief 
speaker  of  the  hour.  He  was  six  feet  tall,  with  a 
great  display  of  jewelry  upon  his  clothes  ;  he  seemed 
to  be  discoursing  upon  the  merits  of  a  pair  of  steers 
which  he  had  lately  purchased.  Fuller  was  some- 
thing of  a  cattle  trader,  by  the  way,  and  thought 
no  .one  was  such  a  good  judge  of  live  stock  of 
all  kinds  as  he.  Mr.  Larkin  himself  had  as  keen 
appreciation  of  fun  as  any  one  and  loved  to  help  it 
on ;  but,  at  the  same  time,  would  preserve  a  coun- 
tenance that  would  lead  one  to  suppose  his  mind 
was  fully  engrossed  with  his  work ;  his  bench  being 
so  located  that  his  back  was  to  the  bystanders,  his 
interest  in  the  conversation  was  not  noticed.  His 
son  Lewis  was  of  a  mirthful  turn,  much  like  the 
father,  only  he  was  quite  small  and  slender  in  his 
frame.  The  company  were  all  giving  close  heed  to 
the  remarks  of  Fuller,  when  the  door  opened  and 
Hanson  Page  entered  with  whip  in  hand.  Page  was 
a  rough  fellow  and  found  his  greatest  delight  in  tor- 
menting any  one  who  came  under  his  sway.  You 
will  remember  that  it  was  Hanson  Page  who  met 
Seth  Pendleton  on  that  day  when  he  had  been  to 
Larkin's  shop  to  have  his  shoes  repaired,  in  prepara- 
tion for  the  singing  school.  After  a  "How  are 
you  ?  "  all  round.  Page  and  Fuller  had  the  floor,  the 
one  flourishing  his  ox  whip  and  the  other  making  a 
great  display  of  his  watch  chains  and  seal  rings. 

"  They  say,"  shouted  Page,  "  that  things  don't  go 
on  so  fine  at  the  Simpson  farm  after  all.  That  tem- 
perance pledge  that  Deacon  Jones  got  Seth  to  sign 
don't  amount  to  much,  and  he  gets  right  out  and  out 
drunk  so  soon." 


58  LEGENDS  OF  OLD  BEDFORD. 

"Just  as  I  expected,"  replied  Fuller,  while  the 
round-faced  man  paused  in  his  pegging  and  said, 
^'  Perhaps  you  are  misinformed." 

"No  I  am  not,"  said  Page,  "  for  I  got  it  from  Han- 
nah Nibbs  as  I  came  up.  I  stopped  there  to  get  some 
purple  topped  turnip  seed  to  sow  among  my  potatoes. 
I  knew  Mr.  Nibbs  always  raised  it,  and  I  thought  he 
might  have  left  some  that  they  would  not  use.  Han- 
nah seems  to  be  full  of  sympathy  for  Seth's  wife  who 
has  been  so  taken  in." 

"  Sure  enough ;  no  doubt  of  that,"  said  the  round- 
faced  man,  giving  the  nose  wart  a  slight  twist.  "  It 
is  a  fact,  Hannah  did  feel  bad  about  that  Simpson 
farm,  and  I  guess  she  would  have  liked  to  try  her 
hand  there,  but  she  didn't  succeed,  and  now  her  sym- 
pathetic disposition  has  found  another  object  on 
which  to  fasten  itself.  I  wonder  if  she  would  like  to 
have  it  known  generally  why  she  left  Mr.  Briggs^ 
employ  ?  " 

Here  Fuller  broke  in  by  saying,  "That's  you, 
Spencer,"  addressing  the  round-faced  man.  "  You 
will  defend  any  one  that  belongs  to  that  temperance 
society,  and  won't  believe  anything  against  them,  no 
matter  who  tells  it.  I  think  Hannah.  Nibbs  is  a 
truthful  woman,  and  I  believe  Seth  has  gone  to 
drinking  again;  perhaps  not  enough  to  hurt  him 
though,"  beginning  to  be  a  little  ashamed  in  the  pres- 
ence of  Mr.  Spencer. 

"If  such  is  the  case,"  replied  Mr.  Spencer,  "I 
think  he  may  be  reclaimed,  and  that's  a  part  of  our 
work,  and  I  for  one  shan't  give  him  up." 

"  If  old  Pendleton  dies  and  Seth  and  Saul  get  the 
inside  of  that  room,  I  just  bet  they  will  be  drunk 
half  of  their  time,"  said  Page. 


THE    MYSTERIOUS    ROOM.  59 

Here  Larkin  whirled  on  his  stool  and  said,  inquir- 
ingly, "  Is  Mr.  Pendleton  sick  ?  " 

''Yes,"  said  Page.  Hannah  tells  me  that  the  gals 
were  at  'Becca's  party  yesterday  and  had  to  go  home 
before  tea,  for  the  old  man  was  taken  with  a  bad 
spell,  and  I  met  Parson  Whitford  headed  that  way  as 
I  came  up.  I  guess  he  has  got  a  hard  fellow  to  con- 
tend with  in  Hezekiah  Pendleton,  if  he  hopes  to  pre- 
pare him  for  death  ;  he  has  been  housed  up  in  that 
room  too  many  years  to  repent  now." 

Here  Mr.  Spencer  interrupted  by  saying,  "All 
things  are  possible  with  God,  and  it  is  not  Mr.  Whit- 
ford who  can  prepare  him,  but  the  Spirit  of  God. 
Mr.  Whitford  may  be  able  to  direct  his  restless  soul ; 
but  it  has  been  so  imbedded  in  this  world's  goods, 
that  it  will  cling  tight  in  death,  I  fear." 

"Right  here,  my  boy,"  said  grandma,  "let  me  impress  upon 
you  the  worthlessness  of  all  earthly  gains  and  possessions 
when  one  comes  to  face  death  ;  if  he  has  lived  a  good,  useful 
life  and  done  as  he  would  be  done  by  in  all  things,  trusting  in 
Christ  for  salvation,  he  won't  fear  in  such  an  hour.  I  hope, 
my  child,  that  the  folly  of  Mr.  Pendleton  will  aid  you  in  so 
planning  your  life  and  conducting  yourself,  that  when  the 
summons  comes,  let  it  be  in  youth,  middle  life  or  old  age,  you 
can  welcome  it  and  go  in  peace  and  leave  a  good  name  behind 
you  in  the  world.  Such  a  legacy  is  a  good  deal  more  valuable 
than  gold  and  is  worth  thinking  of.  Riches  are  of  but  little 
account  in  the  last  hours  of  one's  life,  but  treasures  that  are 
laid  up  in  Heaven  abide  and  avail  for  us  then." 

You  will  see  that  Mr.  Spencer  was  a  good  man  in 
word  and  his  whole  life  was  after  that  type.  He  was 
not  ready  to  believe  evil  reports  of  any  one,  and  as 
such  a  person,  he  was  an  influence  for  good  in  this 
community ;  but  I  can't  say  as  much  for  Fuller  and 
Page,  yet   I   think  that  Hannah   Nibbs  had   a  good 


60  LEGENDS  OF  OLD  BEDFORD. 

heart,  but  she  was  quite  advanced  in  life  when  she 
was  introduced  to  you.  Her  early  hopes  had  been 
blighted  and  she  saw  no  bright  prospects  for  the 
future,  which  explained,  I  think,  why  she  conducted 
herself  so  strangely  at  times  and  talked  so  unreason- 
ably on  some  subjects. 

The  opening  clouds  caused  a  breaking  up  of  the 
meeting  at  Larkin's  and  the  gossips  disappeared, 
greatly  to  the  relief  of  Mr.  Larkin  and  Mr.  Spencer. 
Hanson  Page,  while  on  his  way  home,  stopped  at  Mr. 
Briggs'  to  inquire  after  the  Pendletons,  and  also  to 
see  why  Hannah  had  gone  from  his  employ,  for  Aunt 
Hepsy,  his  wife,  always  wanted  to  know  the  news, 
and  being  somewhat  lame,  she  could  not  get  out 
much  herself,  so  a  budget  of  news  was  quite  a  relief 
to  her.  Mr.  Briggs  had  no  taste  for  gossip,  and  it  was 
but  little  of  that  kind  of  conversation  that  he  could 
be  drawn  into ;  yet  Page  drove-his  steers  to  the  gar- 
den wall  and  went  in  and  found  Mr.  Briggs  sitting  by 
the  fire,  while  Dolly  Sprague  was  near  'by  busily  en- 
gaged. Both  seemed  to  be  looking  over  various  arti- 
cles of  wearing  apparel  unfamiliar  to  this  rough  man. 

After  comments  on  the  weather  and  inquiring  after 
Mr.  Pendleton,  Page  started  on  with  his  steers,  much 
to  the  relief  of  Mr.  Briggs  and  Miss  Sprague. 

Dolly  had  come  over  the  hill  from  her  father's  reluc- 
tantly, to  aid  Mr.  Briggs  in  securing  various  articles 
of  clothing  that  were  being  damaged  by  moths ;  but 
Hanson  Page  saw  it  in  another  light,  and  on  reaching 
home  made  haste  to  tell  Hepsy,  his  wife,  and  so  the 
story  started  that  Mr.  Briggs  was  soon  to  take  Dolly 
Sprague  over  the  hill  to  fill  the  vacancy  in  his  home 
and  the  void  in  his  heart.  Whether  there  were  any 
such  intentions  at  the  time  of  this  visit  on  the  part 


THE    MYSTERIOUS    ROOM. 


61 


"Page  drove  his  steers  to  the  garden  yall." 


of  either,  I  do  not  know,  but  it  was  not  many  months 
before  it  became  apparent  to  all  that  this  rumor  was 
well  founded,  and  just  before  haying  time  of  the  fol- 
lowing year,  the  dwelling  of  Deacon  Sprague  was 
alive  with  people,  for  there  was  to  be  a  double  mar- 
riage on  that  day.  Mr.  Briggs  was  to  take  Dolly 
away,  and  Jabez,  Dolly's  brother,  was  to  bring  a  wife 
home,  where  he  was  to  locate,  and,  with  the  aid  of 
the  youthful  Mrs.  Sprague,  to  care  for  his  father  in 
the  absence  of  Dolly,  who  would  preside  as  Mrs. 
Briggs  at  the  end  of  the  lane  leading  from  Deacon 
Sprague's  to  Mr.  Briggs'  home. 

Hannah  Nibbs  felt  better  about  this  and  was  sorry 
that  she  was  so  hasty  in  leaving  her  situation.  Mr. 
Briggs   and   the   boys    had  got    along   during   those 


62  LEGENDS  OF  OLD  BEDFORD. 

montlis  quite  well,  and  had  enjoyed  themselves  far 
better  than  if  Miss  Nibbs  in  her  unhappy  frame  of 
mind  had  remained.  Hannah  was  so  in  the  habit  of 
talking  that  she  could  not  refrain  from  making  a 
remark  once  in  a  while,  and  she  would  occasionally 
say,  when  in  the  company  of  those  who  would  under- 
stand the  full  import  of  her  sarcasm,  ''  So  Mr.  Briggs 
has  got  the  Sprague  wheat,"  but  it  can  be  said  to  her 
credit,  that  she  seemed  to  lose  some  of  the  vindictive 
spirit  that  had  controlled  her,  and  she  settled  down 
to  care  for  her  mother  who  was  now  becoming  quite 
old  and  feeble. 

Dolly  Sprague  had  always  been  known  by  the  Pen- 
dletons  and  they  seemed  to  take  her  right  into  their 
confidence  as  they  had  her  predecessor,  and  Mr.  and 
Mrs.  Briggs  were  now  their  chief  advisers,  as  in 
earlier  years  Mr.  Briggs,  with  bis  wife  Lucy,  had 
been.  Sally  Pendleton  seemed  a  little  disturbed  at 
first,  but  it  was  soon  over,  for  Miss  Nibbs  had  not 
become  the  companion  of  her  friend,  and  things  went 
on  with  the  old-time  peace  and  good  cheer.  The 
Briggs  boys  welcomed  the  new  mother  as  real  gentle- 
men, and  found  in  her  a  mother's  heart,  and  one  who, 
by  her  mild,  gentle  manner  and  Christian  principles, 
deserved  to  be  called  mother. 

"My  child,  I  would  have  you  know  that  the  true  Christian 
man  or  woman  is  better  fitted  to  fill  any  position  of  responsi- 
bility than  one  who  has  no  decided  Christian  principles.  The 
position  assumed  by  Mrs.  Briggs  w^as  not  an  easy  one.  Two 
boys,  who  well  remembered  their  mother,  were  ready  to  detect 
seeming  faults  in  the  one  who  came  to  take  the  mother's 
place.  Yet  they  soon  learned  that  she  was  trying  to  be  a  true 
mother  to  them,  and  they  grew  up  to  honor  her  and  be 
honored  by  her.  I  may  add  that  good  relatives,  outside  thp 
home,    made  this  position  more  easy  to  fill  than  if  they  had 


THE    MYSTERIOUS    ROOM.  63 

taken  the  opposite  and  more  common  course  ;  and  much  is 
due  to  these  young  men,  who  did  their  part  most  faithfully  ; 
and  now  they  are  useful,  hqnored  men  of  business  and  trust  in 
the  world,  having  gone  from  that  home  with  a  realizing  sense 
of  the  importance  of  Christian  principles  exemplified  in  their 
step-mother. 


SEVENTH  EVENING. 

^iii^:;^R.  PENDLETON  lived  some  years  after  the 
V?  nw/l  P^^*y  ^*  *^^  Nibbs',  but,  sad  to  say,  he  did 
^itSil*  ^^°*  profit  by  his  illness  that  so  excited  the 
family  and  others.  As  soon  as  he  was  able  to  get  to 
his  room,  he  crawled  up  those  dilapidated  stairs  and 
continued  to  rule  his  family  with  the  same  tyrannical 
force ;  his  anxiety  for  a  better  preparation  for  the 
future  life  was  all  over  when  assured  that  death  had 
loosed  its  grip,  but  the  time  came  when  it  was  per- 
fectly apparent  that  his  strength  was  waning  not  to 
revive  again  ;  and  early  one  autumn  morning,  when 
the  grass  was  still  crisp  with  the  frost  of  the  night, 
Saul  Pendleton  entered  the  home  of  Mr.  Briggs  hast- 
ily and  said,  "Dr.  Preston  says  Dad  is  going  this  time 
and  can't  live  long.  I  don't  believe  he  will  ever  git 
off  his  bed  again,  and  Sally  and  Priscilla  want  me  to 
git  the  key  from  him  and  git  into  that  old  room  and 
see  what  he  has  got  there  before  he  dies.  You  know 
that  Seth  got  that  Simpson  farm  right  away  from  us, 
and  Hanson  Page  tells  us  to  git  the  start  of  him  now 
and  look    out  for  ourselves  and  come  up  to  him  in 


64  LEGENDS  OF  OLD  BEDFOKD. 

some  way,  so  the  gals  have  sent  me  dowli  to  see  what 
you  think  of  it," 

Mr.  Briggs  did  not  approve  of  the  course  of  Mr. 
Pendleton  in  regard  to  the  Simpson  farm  after  he 
learned  that  Saul  and  the  girls  did  not  have  anything- 
in  way  of  an  offset ;  but  he  could  not  indorse  the 
plan  that  Hanson  Page  had  advised,  and  in  reply  to 
Saul's  question  said,  "  Kow  that  you  have  come  to  me 
for  advice  on  this  matter,  I  will  give  it,  for  I  think  it 
is  a  very  serious  question.  I  think  you  had  better 
do  nothing  of  the  kind.  Your  father  has  kept  that 
room  sacred  to  his  own  use  for  twenty  years,  and  no 
one  has  stepped  into  it  but  himself ;  now  let  his  last 
days  and  hours  be  undisturbed,  and  don't  meddle  with 
the  room  or  the  key." 

"  Oh,  he  has  got  the  key  tied  by  a  leather  string 
about  his  neck,  and  there  is  no  way  to  git  it  while  he 
knows  anything,  but  to  cut  the  string  and  take  it  in 
spite  of  him,"  said  Saul. 

"  No,  Saul,  I  would  never  trouble  him  about  it,  but 
let  him  die  in  peace  as  far  as  you  are  concerned,'^ 
repeated  Mr.  Briggs  with  a  shake  of  his  head. 

Saul,  who  was  reluctant  to  abandon  his  plan  to  get 
"into  that  room,  and  by  the  aid  of  the  girls  to  secure 
something  to  balance  the  Simpson  farm,  was  hard  ta 
be  convinced  that  he  must  not  do  it,  yet  at  last  con- 
cluded to  go  home  and  abide  by  the  advice  of  the 
ever  faithful  Mr.  Briggs.  Saul  had  no  sooner  reached 
home  than  Sally  made  her  appearance  at  the  Briggs 
house  in  a  business-like  manner  and  sought  advice  on 
a  different  subject. 

"  Now,"  said  she,  "  Sa,ul  has  told  you  that  father 
won't  live  long,  but  a  few  days  at  the  longest,  and  we 
want  to  git  ready  for  the  funeral.     We  must  have  a 


THR    MYSTERIOUS    ROOM.  65 

good  black  gown  each  of  us,  and  it  ought  to  be  made 
right  off,  for  there  will  be  no  time  after  father  is 
dead.  We  have  no  money  on  hand  to  git  the  cloth 
with,  and  we  want  to  know  if  you  will  let  us  have 
the  money  until  we  can  pay  it  back  to  you,  and  if 
you,"  turning  to  Mrs.  Briggs,  "  will  go  to  Boston  and 
get  the  goods."  On  being  assured  that  all  these 
requests  would  be  granted,  Sally  continued,  "  I  think 
you  had  better  git  a  good  lot  of  crape  for  our  bon- 
nets too.  Git  enough  for  mother,  Priscilla  and  me. 
We  ain't  going  to  do  as  Hepsy  Page  did,  when  her 
mother  died,  go  all  about  the  town  and  borrow  every- 
thing she  wanted,  not  a  bit  of  that.  You'll  git  your 
pay  one  of  these  days,  no  matter  whether  Seth  likes 
it  or  not.  Just  let  us  git  hold  of  that  key  and  we 
will  show  him  who  had  the  Simpson  farm.  I  am 
going  right  over  to  see  if  Hannah  Nibbs  will  come 
and  make  our  gowns  just  as  soon  as  you  git  the 
goods  ;  and  will  you  go  to-day  ?  " 

Leaving  Mr.  and  Mrs.  Briggs  to  consider  the  mat- 
ter, Sally  started  off  to  see  Hannah  and  engage  her  to 
come  to  do  the  work ;  returning  in  a  very  short  time, 
she  stopped  to  report  her  success.  Hannah  was  only 
too  willing  to  make  the  engagement,  being  not  a  little 
impelled  by  her  curiosity.  Mr.  Briggs  had  consented 
to  drive  with  his  wife  to  Boston  on  the  following 
day,  which  was  the  best  he  could  do,  and  by  some 
persuasion  convinced  Sally  that  there  would  be  suffi- 
cient time  to  prepare  for  the  funeral  if  they  did  not  go 
for  some  days  ;  but  such  a  delay  could  not  be  consid- 
ered for  a  moment  by  the  anxious  visitor,  while  she 
believed,  after  Mr.  Briggs'  talk  with  her,  that  her 
father  would  last  some  time,  yet  said  she  always 
liked  to  have  things  on  hand. 


66  LEGENDS  OF  OLD  BEDFORD. 

As  soon  as  it  was  convenient  for  Miss  Nibbs  to 
leave  home,  she  started  out  among  the  neighbors  "to 
learn  the  most  suitable  way  for  making  the  gowns/' 
she  said;  but  it  was  very  plain  that  she  was  so 
delighted  with  the  prospect  of  being  at  the  Pendle- 
tons  when  the  father  should  die,  that  she  could  not 
control  herself ;  in  fact,  the  hours  dragged  heavily 
and  she  expressed  much  fear  that  his  end  would 
come  before  the  gowns  were  done.  Hannah  had  not 
been  very  cordial  to  Mrs.  Briggs  and  had  not  called  up- 
on her  since  she  became  the  occupant  of  their  neigh- 
bor's home;  but  she  did  say  to  Mrs.  Johnson  this  after- 
noon that  she  was  glad  Dolly  was  going  to  select  the 
goods  as  she  had  excellent  taste.  She  felt  so  happy 
over  the  prospect  of  being  at  the  Pendletons,  that 
she  had  a  pleasant  word  for  every  one  and  but  a 
little  fault  to  iind  with  any.  It  was  perfectly  evi- 
dent that  she  hoped  to  be  present  when  the  forbid- 
den door  should  be  opened  that  she  might  get  a  look 
into  the  mysterious  room. 

Mr.  and  Mrs.  Briggs,  good  as  their  word,  started 
for  Boston  as  early  in  the  following  day  as  the 
duties  of  the  farm  would  permit,  and  purchased  all 
the  necessary  articles,  and  the  succeeding  morning 
found  Miss  Nibbs  seated  in  a  narrow  room  across  the 
dingy  entry  from  the  larger  room,  where  the  little 
russet-faced  man  lay  curled  up  in  bed,  hugging  his 
key  and  fighting  the  grim  messenger  that  was  hov- 
ering over  the  dwelling  and  would  not  be  turned 
away  until  the  work  was  done. 

"My  child,"  said  grandma,  "had  their  father  done  his  duty 
by  these  children,  they  would  have  been  spending  their  time 
in  providing  for  his  little  wants  in  his  last  hours,  instead  of 
making  preparations  for  a  fine  appearance  after  his  death,  for 


THE    MYSTERIOUS    ROOM.  67 

it  is  plain  to  be  seen  that  the  only  evidence  of  mourning  was 
to  be  their  dress.  I  do  not  mean  that  they  neglected  the  aged 
parent  in  his  last  hours,  but  their  mind  was  not  fully  on  him 
as  is  generally  the  case  when  a  parent  is  sinking  away." 

The  ever-faithful  pastor  called  in  the  afternoon 
and  tried  to  talk  with  the  sinking  man,  but  it  was  too 
late.  If  the  fourscore  and  fourteen  years  of  his  life 
had  not  furnished  hours  for  his  preparation  of  soul, 
these  last  days  did  not,  and  his  hearing  was  so 
impaired  that  he  could  not  follow  the  good  friend 
when  pleading  at  the  Throne  of  Grace  for  him,  so  he 
interrupted  the  prayer  by  crying  out,  "I  want  a 
drink  so,  I'm  most  choked." 

This  rather  hastened  the  Christian  friend  and 
pastor,  who,  with  "amen  "  and  a  kindly  word  for  the 
family,  left  the  house  for  the  last  time  while  Heze- 
kiah  Pendleton  lived. 

Seth  was  the  oldest  of  the  Pendleton  children,  and 
Hanson  Page  had  driven  around  by  his  house  and 
convinced  him  that  it  was  his  privilege  to  take  the 
command  of  things  at  his  father's,  now  the  aged  par- 
ent had  become  so  weak  that  he  could  no  longer  rule. 
So  he  left  his  wife  Patty  in  charge  at  the  Simpson 
farm,  for  it  was  still  known  by  that  name  long  after 
Seth  Pendleton  became  the  possessor,  and  went  over 
to  the  homestead  and  began  to  assert  his  rights  ac- 
cording to  the  directions  of  Hanson  Page.  Seth  was 
in  the  house  when  Mr.  Whitford  was  there,  but  kept 
quiet  until  the  good  minister  was  well  down  the  hill 
on  his  way  home. 

"I  think  it  was  fortunate  that  Mr.  Pendleton  was  deaf 
and  that  his  eyesight  was  so  dim  that  he  did  not  realize  any- 
thing of  the  scene  that  took  place  in  his  own  room,  but  a 
little  while  before  his  spirit  left  the  body.     It  was  very  differ- 


68  LE(JE]SrDS    OF    OLD    BEDFORD. 

ent  from  tliat  which  you  witnessed  when  your  grandfather 
passed  away.  You  well  remember  how  Ave  administered  to  his 
wants  because  of  our  love  for  him,  which  his  good,  generous 
life  had  called  forth  from  us.  When  we  saw  that  life  was  gone, 
you  remember,  we  all  felt  that  his  example  was  one  that  we 
ought  to  try  to  follow;  but  when  poor  Hezekiah  Pendleton 
passed  away,  no  one  could  say  that  his  life  had  been  such  as  to 
furnish  an  example  for  good,  or  regarded  his  memory  precious 
for  any  acts  of  kindness  that  he  had  performed  of  late  years, 
although  in  his  early  days  he  was  a  different  man,  for  those 
characteristics  that  were  so  strong  in  his  last  years  had  grad- 
ually grown  upon  him.  Surely  those  last  hours  furnished  a 
scene  that  I  hope  will  never  be  repeated,  and  probably  would 
never  have  been  known  to  the  world,  had  it  not  been  for  Han- 
nah Nibbs,  whose  curiosity  prompted  her  to  divide  her  atten- 
tion between  the  mourning  gowns  and  the  sick  room,  making 
her  desire  to  have  a  'good  fit'  a  most  plausible  excuse  for 
intruding  on  the  family  as  they  stood  about  the  aged  father  in 
the  last  hours  of  his  life." 

The  good  old  mother  sat  trembling  with  emotion^ 
no  doubt  forgetting  the  scores  of  years  that  were 
now  closing,  and  recalling  the  early  days  of  her  mar- 
ried life,  when  the}^  had  less  wealth  and  more  real 
comfort.  At  such  times,  great  faults  are  overshad- 
owed by  the  virtues  of  earlier  days,  that  is,  in  the 
minds  of  those  who  have  known  them  in  both,  as^ 
when  we  are  passing  through  a  severe  storm,  we 
recall  with  much  pleasure  the  bright  sunny  days  that 
have  preceded  it.  Seth,  with  his  broad  shoulders, 
hard  lists,  unshaven  face  and  bloated  countenance,  for 
his  habits  had  begun  to  tell  upon  him  already,  sat  at 
one  side  of  the  bed,  and  Saul  had  equally  as  promi- 
nent a  place  on  the  opposite  side,  while  the  two  girls, 
for  such  they  were  always  called,  until  they  left  the 
old  home,  were  near  at  hand ;  each  of  the  four  was 
anxious  for  the  end  of  the  father's  life,  but  the  latter 
three  were  quietly  planning  in  their  own  minds  some 


THE    MYSTERIOUS    ROOM.  69 

way  "  to  come  up "  with  Setli,  and  make  sure  of  a 
share  to  balance  the  Simpson  farm. 

"  I  want  you  all  to  understand,"  said  Seth,  "  that  I 
am  the  oldest,  and  I  am  going  to  manage  things  here 
when  father  is  done  with  them,  and  that  will  be 
pretty  soon  too,  by  the  appearances  now,"  stooping 
over  the  bed  to  see  if  breath  still  lingered  in  the 
aged  parent.  "  I  shall  take  that  key  as  soon  as  he  is 
dead,  and  I'll  see  what  is  in  that  room  in  spite  of 
you." 

The  good  mother,  who  had  been  kept  down  so  long, 
did  not  once  think  that  she  had  any  right  to  a  voice 
in  the  matter,  hence  said  nothing  and  only  feared  the 
scene  that  would  follow  the  death  of  her  husband. 
At  this  point  a  voice  from  the  lower  room  checked 
the  conversation.  JS^ot  one  of  the  children  of  the  old 
couple  being  willing  to  trust  the  others  in  the  room 
during  their  absence,  Hannah  was  called  to  go  and 
see  who  was  there  and  attend  to  his  wants.  It 
was  Ike  Fuller,  who,  on  learning  the  state  of  affairs, 
did  not  wait  to  be  asked,  but  pushed  his  way  to  the 
sick  room,  exclaiming  as  soon  as  entering,  "Wall, 
wall,  the  old  gent  is  about  gone  and  you  will  soon 
have  matters  in  your  own  hands,  mother,"  turning  to 
Mrs.  Pendleton  and  addressing  her  familiarly,  as  was 
his  custom,  for  he  was  not  an  infrequent  visitor  to 
the  Pendleton  home. 

"What's  that?"  shouted  Seth,  "I'm  the  oldest 
and  I  guess  I  shall  manage  affairs  myself." 

"Tut,  tut,"  said  Ike  ;  "  it's  your  mother's  privilege 
to  say  who  shall  attend  to  matters  if  she  is  not  able 
to  do  it,  and  of  course  she  is  not." 

Here  the  good  woman  took  courage  and  said,  "I 
will  send  for  Mr.  Briggs,"  and  addressing  Mr.  Fuller 


70  LEGENDS  OF  OLD  BEDFORD. 

said,  "  Will  you  go  right  down  for  him  and  tell  him 
father  is  about  gone  and  that  I  want  him  to  come 
right  up  here  ?  " 

Ike  was  soon  off,  rather  glad  to  be  able  to  do  the 
errand,  in  hopes  to  be  asked  to  return,  and  possibly 
to  get  a  look  into  that  room. 

Mr.  Briggs  was  soon  at  the  Pendletons  and  Ike 
Fuller  with  him.  The  good  old  lady  had  seemed  to 
change  in  her  appearance  in  the  very  few  moments 
that  had  elapsed  since  being  told  that  she  had  some 
rights,  and  she  quietly  withdrew  to  another  room 
with  Mr.  Briggs,  to  tell  him  the  condition  of  things, 
while  the  four  ignorant,  avaricious  children  of  the 
aged  couple  stood  watching  the  father  and  each 
other. 

The  sewing  room  of  Hannah  Nibbs  was  so  located 
that  she  could  hear  the  conversation  from  both  par- 
ties, and,  .according  to  her  story,  the  change  that 
came  over  Mrs.  Pendleton  was  wonderful  when 
she  realized  that  it  was  her  right  to  speak  and 
.exercise  a  little  authority.  Before  Mr.  Briggs  left 
the  house,  it  was  wisely  agreed  that  everything 
should  be  put  in  his  charge,  but  that  the  key  should 
not  be  touched  even  by  him,  until  death  had  done  its 
work.  On  directing  Ike  Fuller  to  stay  until  he 
returned,  Mr.  Briggs  went  home  to  arrange  his  pri- 
vate business  so  that  he  could  devote  most  of  the 
immediate  future  to  the  new  responsibilities  which  he 
had  reluctantly  taken. 

While  watching  with  the  sinking  man  and  the 
family,  Fuller  made  good  use  of  the  time  by  display- 
ing the  merits  of  his  jewelry  and  telling  wonderful 
things  of  his  brindled  steers.  Strange  subjects  for 
such  an  hour,  you  say,  so  did  Miss  Nibbs  ;   but  you 


THE    MYSTERIOUS    ROOM. 


71 


must  remember  that  Fuller  was  a  rough,  unprinci- 
pled man,  was  always  ready  for  a  trade,  and  had  an 
eye  to  some  of  the  money  that  was  soon  to  leave  the 
grasp  of  Mr.  Pendleton  and  start  into  circulation. 
His  bogus  watch  and  chain,  with  those  flashing  seal 
rings,  looked  fine  to  Saul  and  Priscilla,  who  silently 
declared  they  would  have  some  of  that  sort  one  of 
these  days. 

While  Ike  Fuller  was  talking  with  Page,  who  had 
dropped  in,  the  aged  father  passed  away,  and  when 
Mr.  Briggs  returned,  hastened  by  Hannah's  call,  there 
sat  Mother  Pendleton,  Seth,  Saul,  Sally  and  Priscilla 
around  the  bed,  on  which  lay  the  lifeless  form  of 
husband,  father,  miser.  Fuller  and  Page  were  abashed 
in  the  presence  of  death,  and  stood  in  the  rear. 


The  Miser's  Death  Bed. 


Mr.  Briggs,  with  his  characteristic  dignity,  stepped 
forward  and  said,  "  According  to  your  agreement,  in 


12  LEGENDS  OF  OLD  BEDFORD. 

your  presence  and  in  the  presence  of  Isaac  Fuller, 
Hanson  Page,  and  Hannah  Nibbs,"  who,  with  an 
unfinished  garment  in  hand  stood  in  the  doorway, 
^^I  take  possessioi^  of  this  key,"  cutting  the  string 
that  held  it  to  the  poor,  emaciated  form,  and  formally 
placing  it  in  his  breast-pocket. 

A  life  of  ninety-four  years  had  closed  with  but  few 
regrets,  save  that  the  influence  of  this  long  life  could 
not  be  more  helpful  to  the  community  in  which  it  had 
been  spent. 


EIGHTH  EVENING. 

^jrJI'T  required  some  time  for  the  Pendleton  sons  and 
i^  daughters  to  realize  that  they  had  given  up  their 
yj  power  to  Mr.  Briggs  before  they  had  a  right  to 
exercise  it  in  reality  ;  but  the  good  mother  manifested 
no  desire  to  assume  any  responsibility  whatever,  and 
in  fact  her  children  had  implicit  confidence  in  Mr. 
Briggs,  and  he  would  have  succeeded  in  doing  what 
he  felt  was  his  duty,  with  but  little  opposition,  only 
that  Hanson  Page  and  some  others  filled  them  with 
ideas  that  were  prompted  by  feelings  of  jealousy. 
Many  of  the  townfolks  had  a  great  longing  to  fill  the 
position  which  Mr.  Briggs  was  to  occupy. 

Ike  Fuller's  desire  to  work  off  some  of  his  jewelry 
led  him  to  make  too  many  calls  on  the  younger  Pen- 
dletons  for  their  good  ;  in  fact,  he  did  not  hesitate  to 
make  his  flattering  offers  before  the  burial  of  the 
father,  and   Page's   steers   did   tempt   Saul.      While 


THE    MYSTERIOUS    ROOM.  73 

these  pretended  friends,  but  mischief  makers  in 
reality,  were  filling  the  heads  of  the  girls  and  Saul, 
Mr.  Briggs  was  making  preparations  for  the  funeral. 

Squire  Taylor,  as  he  was  commonly  known,  being  a 
Justice  of  the  Peace  and  a  carpenter  by  trade,  was  mak- 
ing the  coffin,  and  Hannah  Nibbs  was  gathering  the 
folds  in  some  dark  brown  calico  for  the  last  garment, 
and  hastening  to  finish  off  the  gowns  that  were  now 
actually  needed.  The  people  of  the  little  town  had 
generally  learned  that  Mr.  Pendleton  was  dead,  for 
the  bell  in  the  old  church  belfry  that  stood  apart  from 
the  meeting  house  had  for  five  minutes  slowly  pealed 
forth  its  measured  notes,  proclaiming  to  all  that  a 
death  had  taken  place,  and  warning  them  to  be  ready 
to  count.  After  a  pause  of  two  minutes  the  rapid 
strokes  of  the  bell-man  counted  up  to  ninety-four, 
which  convinced  all  that  Hezekiah  Pendleton  had 
gone,  for  he  was  the  oldest  citizen  in  the  village. 

Bridge  Potter,  brother  to  Patty,  happened  to  drop 
into  Taylor's  shop,  and  finding  Ike  Fuller  there, 
stopped  to  inquire  into  the  particulars  of  the  last 
hours  of  Mr.  Pendleton,  and  see  Squire  Taylor  put 
the  staining  on  the  surface  of  the  rude  pine  coffin 
that  was  about  completed. 

"  Pendleton  can  have  that  room  all  to  himself,  and 
there  is  no  need  of  a  lock  to  it  either,"  said  Bridge 
thoughtlessly,  pointing  to  the  coffin,  that  was  just 
receiving  the  finishing  touches  by  the  Squire. 

"Sure  enough,"  replied  Fuller;  " and  I  guess  he'd 
be  glad  to  have  a  chance  to  let  in  a  little  air,  for  I 
reckon  he'll  want  all  the  breeze  there  is  where  he's 
gone." 

"These  were  unkind  remarks  indeed,  my  boy,  as  you  well 
know,  and  no  kind-hearted,  thoughtful  person  woukl  talk  in 


74  LEGENDS  OF  OLD  BEDFORD. 

that  way  ;  but  Potter  and  Fuller  were  rough,  and  thoughtless 
of  the  feelings  of  others,  and  the  life  of  Mr.  Pendleton  had 
been  such  that  the  best  of  people  had  but  little  reason  to 
express  sympathy  for  the  family  or  to  respect  the  memory  of 
the  dead." 

Seth,  who  was  feared  by  his  brother  and  sisters, 
went  home  soon  after  Mr.  Briggs  took  the  key,  and, 
nnfortunateiy,  indulged  his  appetite  too  freely,  and 
being  under  the  influence  of  liquor,  did  not  appear  at 
the  old  home  until  the  day  of  the  funeral ;  and  it  was 
to  be  regretted  that  he  came  then,  for,  knowing  that 
Mr.  Briggs  was  one  of  the  active  members  of  the 
temperance  society,  he  believed  he  would  not  provide 
the  complement  of  liquors  for  the  funeral,  and  being 
determined  "that  father  should  have  a  good  send- 
off,"  he  came  on  with  a  supply  of  punch  all  ready 
made,  and  had  Ike  Fuller,  Hanson  Page,  Bridge  Pot- 
ter, and  some  others,  who  gathered  early  in  the  after- 
noon of  the  funeral  day,  well  filled  before  Mr.  Briggs 
found  it  out ;  who,  when  he  did  learn  of  the  state  of 
affairs,  remonstrated  with  Seth ;  but  on  finding  him 
determined,  gave  up  and  let  him  have  his  own  way, 
rather  than  have  a  scene  of  discord,  just  as  the  town- 
folks  were  gathering.  The  girls  had  proposed  that 
black  gloves  be  furnished  for  all  the  mourners,  hav- 
ing seen  this  done  in  some  families  of  note ;  but  Saul 
did  not  favor  it,  as  none  but  home-made  mittens  had 
ever  been  on  his  bony  hands,  and  "What  is  good 
enough  for  me  is  good  enough  for  any  one  who  will 
come  here,"  said  Saul,  with  a  veto  of  emphasis. 

Mr.  Briggs  had  no  such  ideas  and  readily  acceded 
to  the  desire  of  Saul,  and  gloves  were  not  furnished. 
Just  before  the  company  were  seated  in  the  best  room 
for  the  services,  Seth  called  the  neighbors  who  had 


THE    MYSTERIOUS    ROOM. 


75 


been  selected  for  bearers  out  one  side,  and  gave  them, 
another  round  of  punch,  saying,  "Drink  hearty,  for 
you've  got  a  long  tramp  to  the  yard.  To  be  sure,  the 
old  gent  don't  weigh  much,  yet  you'll  need  it."  But 
five  of  the  eight  responded  to  his  call.  Three  of 
them  had  joined  the  temperance  society,  and  believed 
it  was  incumbent  upon  them  to  keep  the  pledge  even 
on  such  an  occasion  as  this. 

"  The  customs  in  the  days  of  the  Pendletons  were  very 
imlike  those  of  the  present,  so  the  proceedings  of  Seth  were 
not  looked  upon  as  they  would  be  now.  There  was  no  such 
thing  as  a  hearse  in  which  to  carry  the  dead,  and  at  times 
the  coffin  was  borne  on  the  shoulders  of  four  men.  In  later 
years  they  had  a  frame,  called  a  bier,  with  four  handles  to  it 
on  which  the  coffin  was  placed  and  carried  to  the  grave  much 
more  easily.  Eight  bearers  were  selected,  so  as  to  give  an 
opportunity  for  rest  to  four,  without  delaying  the  procession." 


Squire  Taylor  made  the  Coffin. 

The  Funeral  of  Hezekiah  Pendleton. 


76  LEGENDS  OF  OLD  BEDFORD. 

As  the  yard  was  quite  a  long  distance  from  the 
Pendleton  home,  the  full  number  was  very  neces- 
sary at  the  burial  of  Mr.  Pendleton.  Miss  Nibbs 
was  selected  as  the  general  directress  of  affairs  in 
the  house,  with  the  exception  of  what  Seth  would 
attend  to.  Priscilla,  who  was  very  particular  about 
the  appearance  of  the  rooms,  came  into  the  living 
apartment  just  before  Mr.  Whitford  began  the  read- 
ing of  the  Scriptures  and  gave  her  last  orders  to 
Hannah.  Her  coarse  voice  was  heard  through  all  the 
rooms,  as  the  silence  that  is  customary  in  the  pres- 
ence of  death  had  taken  possession.  "Miss  Nibbs, 
if  you  see  any  ants  on  the  dresser,  you  brush  them 
off." 

It  is  needless  to  say  that  some  people  were  inclined 
to  smile  at  these  directions  of  Priscilla,  regardless  of 
the  hour  and  the  occasion. 

The  service  being  over,  many  stood  about  in  a  cir- 
cle, while  Ike  Fuller  brought  in  a  pailful  of  toddy 
and  passed  it  around,  greatly  to  the  disgust  of  many, 
but  to  the  pleasure  of  others,  who  quietly  said,  "  Seth 
is  doing  it  up  in  good  shape."  It  was  noticed  that 
Hanson  Page  changed  his  position  during  the  passing 
of  the  drink  and  so  located  himself  as  to  have  a  sec- 
ond opportunity,  and  he  showed  its  effects  before  he 
reached  the  grave. 

Rev.  Mr.  Whitford  took  Mrs.  Pendleton  into  his 
chaise  and  followed  immediately  behind  the  bearers 
and  the  body.  The  other  members  of  the  family 
walked  to  the  grave,  as  horses  were  not  very  numer- 
ous and  carriages  were  hardly  known ;  only  the  min- 
ister and  doctor,  with  a  few  wealthy  people,  had 
them.  Mr.  Briggs  and  Hannah  Nibbs  remained  at 
the  house.    Hannah  was  to  prepare  tea  for  the  family 


THE    MYSTERIOUS    ROOM.  77 

and  neighbors  who  had  been  asked  in  to  eat  with  the 
mourners  on  their  return  from  the  grave. 

Before  sunset,  Seth  was  carried  home,  worse  from 
the  effects  of  his  liquors,  and  before  all  the  people 
had  retired.  Mr.  Briggs,  knowing  that  Seth  was 
located  for  the  night,  and  fearing  nothing  from  the 
other  members  of  the  family,  decided  to  go  home,  and 
Hannah  Nibbs  also  left  the  house.  The  family  were 
alone,  a  sad  time  generally  in  a  home  that  has  been 
visited  by  death ;  but  sorrow  did  not  enter  here,  only 
as  the  heart  of  the  good  old  mother  was  pained,  as 
she  recalled  the  years  of  her  early  married  life,  when 
her  husband  was  considerate  of  her  feelings,  and 
when  they  labored  and  planned  together  to  provide 
for  the  wants  of  their  growing  family.  Could  one 
have  looked  in  upon  them  in  the  early  hour  of  dark- 
ness, he  would  have  seen  Saul  and  the  sisters  skulk- 
ing about  the  house  by  the  light  of  a  dim  candle. 
What  were  they  doing,  do  you  ask  ? 

"  We'll  pay  Seth  for  getting  the  Simpson  farm 
away  from  Dad  in  that  way,"  whispered  Saul,  fearing 
Mother  might  be  disturbed ;  and  knowing  she  would 
not  countenance  anything  of  the  kind,  they  did  not 
want  her  to  appear.  Had  one  have  been  outside  the 
house  an  hour  later,  he  would  have  seen,  by  the  light 
of  the  stars  that  twinkled  in  the  crisp  atmosphere  of 
that  November  night,  three  tall  figures  start  from  the 
back  door  of  the  house,  come  around  to  the  front  by 
a  circuitous  path,  cross  the  highway  and  pass  on  into 
the  cattle  yard  and  disappear  from  view.  One,  appar- 
ently in  female  attire,  seemed  to  lead  the  way,  hav- 
ing in  hand  a  tin  frame  punctured  with  small  holes, 
through  which  the  flickering  rays  of  a  lighted  candle 
dimly  shone,  but  aided  in  seeing  the  outline  of  the 


78 


LEGENDS    OF    OLD    BEDFORD. 


other  two  figures,  one  of  whicli  seemed  to  be  bending 
over  a  heavy  burden,  while  the  other  carried  what 
appeared  to  be  a  frame  of  some  kind  in  one  hand  and 
a  spade  in  the  other.  Their  shadows,  cast  by  the  dim 
light,  revealed  their  stealthy  movements. 


The  Night  after  the  Funeral. 


THE    MYSTERIOUS    ROOM.  79 


NINTH  EVENING. 

JHE  legal  steps  having  been  taken,  Mr.  Briggs 
took  full  possession  of  the  Pendleton  prop- 
erty, and  at  an  early  date  commenced  to  set- 
tle according  to  law.  There  was  no  will.  Hezekiah 
Pendleton  had  such  a  firm  grasp  on  life  that  he  never 
allowed  himself  to  think  of  death ;  and  if  he  had,  I 
doubt  if  he  could  have  brought  his  mind  to  the  point 
where  he  would  have  been  willing  to  put  on  paper 
the  words,  "  I  give,"  for  they  were  unknoA\^  to  his 
vocabulary  since  Seth  got  the  Simpson  farm ;  but  *^  I 
keep  "  were  words  that  filled  all  the  space. 

"My  child,  I  hope  you  fully  realize  the  misfortune  that 
befalls  any  one  who  forms  such  a  penurious  habit  as  did  Mr. 
Pendleton.  I  would  not  have  you  unmindful  of  the  future  and 
fail  to  prepare  for  old  age,  but  guard  against  a  miserly  propen- 
sity." 

A  few  days  after  the  funeral  Mr.  Briggs  appeared 
early  in  the  morning  with  three  men,  he  having  spent 
the  greater  part  of  each  day  there  since  the  funeral. 
They  were  Jones  and  Taylor,  both  Justices  of  the 
Peace,  and  Mr.  Larkin,  who  were  to  take  an  inven- 
tory of  the  property.  Mr.  Briggs  was  careful  to 
guard  against  any  opportunity  for  the  many  jealous 
people  of  the  village  to  charge  him  with  appropriat- 
ing anything  to  his  personal  use,  so  he  decided  not  to 
enter  that  room  alone,  and  he  had  not  touched  the 
lock  since  he  took  the  key  from  its  dead  owner,  and 
was  quite  sure  no  one  had,  and  believing  no  one 
could  find  any  other  entrance  to  the  den,  he  felt  per- 
fectly safe  in  waiting  until  the  appraisers  were  duly 
sworn,  before  he  touched  the  door  which  had  swung 


80  LEGENDS  OF  OLD  BEDFORD. 

open  for  no  one  bnt  Hezekiah  Pendleton  for  twenty- 
years.     The}^   waited   for    Setli,  that    every  member 
of  the  family  might  be  present  when  the  old  rusty 
key  was  turned.     They  did  not  wait  long  ;   Seth  soon 
came  puffing  in  at  a  rapid  pace,  and  up  the  back  stairs 
they  went.     Mr.  Briggs  turned  the   key  and  swung 
open  the  door.     The  squeak  of  the  old  rusty  hinges, 
that  had  sent  a  shudder  through  each  member  of  the 
family  for  years,  had  now  turned  to  melody  and  sent 
a  thrill  of  joy  through  every  one  of  them.     A  little 
window  of  diamond  shaped  glass  set  in  lead,  opening 
out  upon  the  roof  of  a  shed  at  the  rear,  was  the  only 
means    of    obtaining    light,    and    this   being   partly 
screened  by  a  board  resting  against  it,  allowed  but  a 
very  dim  light  to  enter  the  room.     The  screen  being 
removed,  and  the  eyes  of  each  of  the  explorers,  for 
such  they  might  well  be  called,  becoming  accustomed 
to  the   conditions,  there  was   but   little   difficulty  in 
viewing  the  surroundings.     The  room  was  about  ten 
feet  wide  and  a  little  longer  ;  quite  low  studded,  with 
the  rafters    all   visible.     It  was  entirely  unfinished. 
The  old  beams  and   braces  were   perforated   by  the 
worms  of  years,  but  as  it  was  the  contents  that  inter- 
ested the  apj)raisers,  administrator  and  heirs,  as  well 
as  Hannah  and  all  the  townfolks,  so  that  is  what  is 
of  the  most  interest  to  you. 

This  room  was  none  other  than  the  temple  which 
contained  Hezekiah  Pendleton's  god.  Here  was  what 
he  had  worked  for  ;  that  for  which  he  had  denied  his 
wife  and  children  the  comforts,  yes,  necessities  of 
life;  and  what  had  afforded  him  no  comfort  in  the 
hour  of  death.     Yet  it  was  his  god. 

"What  (1.0  I  mean?  Why,  my  child,  I  mean  that  any  thhig 
or  person  that  is  worshipped  by  another  becomes  that  person's 


THE    MYSTERIOUS    ROOM.  81 

idol,  and  any  one  who  sets  his  affections  on  such  an  object  or 
person,  breaks  tlie  first  commandment,  whicli  you  well  know 
to  be,  '  Thou  shalt  have  no  other  gods  before  me ; '  and  from 
what  you  have  learned  of  Hezekiah  Pendlton,  do  you  think  he 
kept  that  commandment?  " 

•'No,  grandma,  I  do  not,  said  Xed  ;  "but  do  tell  me  what 
was  there." 

There  were  a  few  partially  burnt  sticks  on  the  old 
hearth,  a  little  round  table  near  it,  on  which  was  a 
piece  of  birch  bark,  that  revealed  some  figures  —  col- 
ums  added,  and  some  not  added.  These  articles,  with 
an  old  wooden  chair  without  a  back,  were  all  of  the 
furnishings ;  but  on  the  beams,  in  the  angles  where 
the  braces  met,  and  in  fact  on  all  parts  and  in  all 
corners  of  the  room,  were  piles  of  coins  and  rolls  of 
bank  bills,  and  hanging  from  wooden  pegs  were  bags 
that  held  from  a  quart  upwards,  filled  with  rusty 
coppers  and  odd  pieces  of  coin,  the  value  of  which 
could  not  be  then  determined.  It  was  noticeable  that 
at  one  side  there  seemed  to  be  an  empty  appearance, 
when  compared  with  the  other  parts,  and  one 
remarked,  "  AVell,  the  old  man  didn't  live  long  enough 
to  fill  up  tliis  end."  At  this  time  Saul  and  the  girls 
seemed  to  be  uneasy,  yet  it  was  but  little  noticed,  and 
the  work  of  counting  and  recording  went  on.  All 
of  the  coin  that  was  familiar  to  the  appraisers  and  of 
which  the  value  could  be  determined  was  thrown 
into  one  large  box,  and  that  which  was  not  known 
was  deposited  in  another,  while  the  paper  notes  were 
uncertain  and  given  over  to  Mr.  Briggs  to  be  exam- 
ined by  experts  in  the  city,  a  record  of  the  denomi- 
nations being  made  without  the  value. 

The  beams  being  cleared,  the  company  descended 
to  the  lower  floor,  and  the  work  of  appraisal  contin- 


82  LK(iKNl)S    OF    OLD    BEDFORD. 


Mr.  Briggs  turned  the  key  and  swung  open  the  door. 


THE    MYSTERIOUS    ROOM.  83 

ued  with  more  rapidity,  for  the  heirs  were  not  quite 
as  attentive,  and  their  company  might  well  have  been 
dispensed  with  ;  their  duties  thus  far  had  been  self- 
imposed,  and  were  mostly  those  of  watching  each 
other.  While  looking  at  the  cattle  in  the  barn. 
Squire  Taylor  said,  "If  the  old  man  had  put  a  few 
of  those  bank  bills  on  the  cattle,  they  would  have 
been  in  better  condition,  and  I  am  mistaken  if  he 
wouldn't  have  left  more  property.  I  shall  miss  my 
guess  if  half  of  those  rolls  that  he  has  been  counting 
over  for  years,  until  they  are  worn  thin  with  his  fin- 
gering, are  not  worthless." 

After  serving  a  good,  hot  dinner  for  the  gentlemen, 
Sally  and  Priscilla  concluded  to  go  up  to  the  mysteri- 
ous room  and  give  it  a  cleansing,  such  as  it  had  not 
received  for  many  years  ;  neither  broom  nor  brush 
had  entered  there  for  a  score  of  years,  unless  their 
father  had  taken  it,  and  as  that  was  not  in  keeping 
with  the  habits  of  Mr.  Pendleton,  it  was  not  at  all 
likely  that  any  cleaning  had  been  done  there  at  all, 
and  the  appearance  of  the  floor  and  any  unoccupied 
parts  indicated  neglect,  while  every  corner  and  angle 
that  held  the  coin  and  bills  was  free  from  dust  and 
cobwebs,  and  the  hoarded  wealth  was  noticeable  for 
its  freedom  of  dirt,  showing  conclusively  that  the 
owner  spent  his  time  here  in  counting  and  rearrang- 
ing his  accumulations.  Had  Mr.  Pendleton  put  his 
money  at  interest  and  spent  his  time,  if  he  must 
waste  so  much  of  it,  'in  reckoning  up  the  interest, 
he  .would  have  left  a  much  larger' estate.  Sally  was 
down  on  her  knees  peering  into  every  dark  corner 
and  giving  each  part  a  thorough  cleaning,  when  she 
discovered  a  hole,  evidently  the  work  of  rats,  and 
calling  Priscilla,  who  was  up  on  a  stool  brushing  the 


84 


LEGENDS    OF    OLD    BEDFORD. 


cobwebs  from  above,  a  candle  was  lighted  and  brought 
in  and  investigation  made.  A  bunch  of  tattered 
paper  was  brought  out  that  proved  to  be  parts  of 
bank  bills,  and  aroused  the  sweepers  to  such  an  inter- 
est that  they  hardly  knew  what  course  to  pursue. 

"I'll  go  and  tell  Mr.  Briggs,"  said  Sally. 

"  No,"  said  Priscilla,  "  let's  look  into  the  matter 
ourselves,  and  if  there  is  anything  here  we'll  keep  it. 
Seth  has  got  the  Simpson  farm  and  Saul  will  git  the 
best  of  us  anyhow." 


-^7] 


The  Pendleton  Homestead. 


They  concluded  to  say  nothing  about  it,  and  some- 
time when  Saul  was  away  they  would  take  up  a  floor 
board  and  see  what  they  could  find.  Night  came  on 
long  before  the  appraisers  had  completed  the  round 
of  the  buildings.  They  left  the  records  with  Mr. 
Briggs,  and  decided  to  resume  work  on  the  following* 
day.  Josiah  Briggs  came  for  his  father  with  the 
horse  and  sled,  as  the  snow  had  been  falling  all  day 
and  the  first  sledding  of  the  early  winter  had  come. 
It  was  fortunate  that  the  son  was  so  thoughtful, 
otherwise   Mr.    Briggs   would   have   been  obliged  to 


THE    MYSTERIOUS    ROOM.  85 

remain  all  night  as  he  had  allowed  his  helpers  to  go 
home  without  making  any  provision  for  the  safe- 
keeping of  the  money,  and  he  could  not  feel  secure  in 
leaving  it  long  enough  there  with  the  legal  heirs,  to 
go  for  his  team  ;  and  not  one  of  the  four  children  of 
Hezekiah  Pendleton  had  confidence  enough  in  the 
others  to  leave  them  while  the  boxes  were  in  the 
house,  so  they  would  not  go  to  the  barn  to  get  the 
Pendleton  team  for  Mr.  Briggs. 

With  the  heavy  boxes  of  coin  on  the  sled,  Josiah 
drove  off,  while  his  father  kept  an  eye  on  the  precious 
load.  They  were  but  a  short  distance  down  the  hill 
when  Seth  was  seen  coming  the  same  way,  but  as  Mr. 
Briggs  knew  that  Saul  and  the  sisters  would  not  be 
easy  if  he  should  permit  Seth  to  ride,  he  did  not  halt. 
On  reaching  home  he  found  Saul,  who  had  taken  a 
short  cut  across  the  lots  in  order  to  learn  if  his 
brother  had  got  on  to  the  sled  and  thus  had  a  chance 
to  put  his  hands  into  the  contents  of  the  boxes. 
These  acts  of  the  Pendleton  children  were  not 
because  of  a  loss  of  confidence  in  Mr.  Briggs,  but 
indicated  their  lack  of  confidence  in  each  other.  The 
three  who  lived  at  home  had  some  reason  for  the 
feeling  against  their  older  brother,  while  he  distrusted 
them.  A  bad  state  of  affairs  to  be  sure,  but  the  Pen- 
dleton family  was  not  the  only  one  where  such  feel- 
ings exist  and  are  manifested,  especially  when  there  is 
property  left  to  be  divided,  and  where  the  members 
have  had  the  advantages  of  a  better  training. 

It  took  more  than  another  day  to  finish  the  work. 
There  were  broad  acres  of  a  heavy  growth  of  the 
best  of  timber  and  many  acres  of  out-land  that  had 
to  be  visited  and  looked  over,  and  the  snow  was  a 
hindrance  to  that  part  of  the  work.     Ike  Puller  con- 


86      -     LEGENDS  OF  OLD  BEDFORD. 

vinced  Seth  and  Saul  that  they  would  be  taxed,  if  it 
was  known  how  much  property  there  was,  to  such  an 
extent,  that  they  would  be  alarmed;  so,  with  the 
advice  of  Fuller,  they  undertook  to  persuade  Mr. 
Briggs  not  to  make  a  correct  return  of  the  inventory 
to  the  Probate  Court,  and  in  fact  did  try  to  bribe  him 
and  the  appraisers  as  well,  but  Mr.  Briggs  was  above 
bribes  and  true  as  steel,  and  went  on  doing  his  full 
duty,  fearless  of  any  man.  The  town  was  not  with- 
out jealous  people  who  were  ready  to  say  that  he 
would  "feather  his  own  nest,"  but  he  had  such  a 
reputation  for  truth  and  veracity,  that  any  thought- 
ful, honest  person  in  the  community  would  not  have 
the  least  suspicion  of  him. 

After  the  work  of  appraisal  was  over,  Mr.  Briggs 
took  a  trip  to  Boston  on  horse-back,  carrying  a  differ- 
ent load  from  what  he  had  ever  taken  before.  The 
large  leather  saddle  bags  were  thrown  over  the  back 
of  the  horse,  filled  with  the  coins  of  doubtful  value 
to  be  exchanged  for  currency  of  the  day.  He  was 
obliged  to  make  several  such  journeys  for  the  same 
purpose  before  the  value  of  the  contents  of  the 
boxes  was  known.  And  when  many  of  the  bank 
notes  were  offered  for  exchange,  they  proved  to  be 
worthless,  and  the  banks  which  they  represented  were 
no  longer  in  existence,  and  to  all  appearances  were 
worthless  when  Mr.  Pendleton  took  them  and  packed 
them  away  in  the  mysterious  room;  but  as  he  did 
not  know  of  their  worthlessness,  he  derived  as  much 
comfort  from  counting  them  as  he  did  from  reckoning 
up  the  piles  of  silver  crowns  and  other  pieces ;  and  I 
don't  know  but  it  was  just  as  well  for  his  children  ac 
though  they  had  brought  par  value. 

This  report  disheartened  the  girls^and  they  at  once 


THE    MYSTERIOUS    ROOM.  87 

lost  confidence  in  their  secret  prospect,  so  they  told 
Mr.  Briggs  about  it  and  he  at  once  took  up  the  floor 
boards  and  found  that  what  they  had  taken  from  the 
mouth  of  the  hole  was  only  the  beginning  of  the  store 
that  the  destructive  animals  had  taken  away.  Doubt- 
less the  greasy  surface  of  the  bills  had  made  them 
doubly  attractive  to  the  marauders,  and  they  had 
gathered  a  large  quantity,  the  remnants  of  which 
filled  the  largest  milk  pan  of  the  family;  but  the 
mass  was  so  thoroughly  torn  that  it  was  impossible 
to  make  any  accurate  estimate  of  the  value  that  had 
been  carried  away.  The  wonderment  was  that  so 
much  could  have  been  taken  while  Mr.  Pendleton 
lived  and  not  have  been  missed  by  him.  From  the 
appearance  of  the  nest,  it  was  not  a  fresh  one,  and 
must  have  been  taken  from  the  room  some  months 
before. 

When  this  fact  became  known  to  the  people  of  the 
village,  it  furnished  a  subject  for  discussion  at  many 
gatherings,  and  the  next  meeting  at  Larkin's  shop 
faithfully  considered  all  sides  of  the  question,  and 
the  verdict  reached  was  that  Mr.  Pendleton  did  real- 
ize that  his  funds  were  on  the  decrease,  and  this  was 
what  made  him  more  fretful  towards  the  end  of  life  ; 
and  some  of  the  company  fully  believed  that  the  anx- 
iety and  worriment  hastened  him  to  his  grave.  How 
much  good  that  old  man  might  have  done  with  the 
money,  and  how  much  better  it  would  have  been  if  he 
had  put  it  on  his  cattle  as  Squire  Taylor  remarked. 
All  the  benefit  that  can  result  from  the  regrets  of 
any  one  now,  must  come  in  the  way  of  guarding 
against  such  propensities  as  predominated  in  Heze- 
kiah  Pendleton. 


88 


LEGENDS    OF    OLD    BEDFOKD. 


The  Meeting  House. 


TENTH  EVENING. 

N  many  of  the  early  settlements  of  Xew  Eng- 
land, the  first  matters  that  received  the  atten- 
y-fii  ^^^^  ^^  ^1^®  pioneers  were  the  founding  of  a 
church  and  the  settlement  of  a  pastor.  He  was  or- 
dained with  very  impressive  ceremonies,  and  his  term 
of  service  was  not  expected  to  end  until  death.  Par- 
son Whitford  spent  his  life  with  the  people  of  this 
town,  and  was  sincerely  mourned  at  his  death. 

Rev.  Mr.  Jones,  who  had  completed  his  farm 
buildings,  had  an  eye  for  the  pastorate,  and  sought 
an  opportunity  to  be  heard,  in  fact,  did  go  so  far  as 
to  make  himself  rather  obnoxious  to  the  people ;  and 
when  he  found  he  was  not  to  be  called  to  the  vacant 
pulpit,  he  became  very  morose  and  said  many  bitter 
things  and  manifested  anything  but  a  Christian 
spirit. 

The  good  folks  kept  on  wondering  what  he  was 
going  to  do  with  his  new  buildings.     "Fine  chance 


THE    MYSTERIOUS    ROOM.  89 

for  sombody/'  satd  Hannah  Xibbs  one  day  when  call- 
ing at  the  Pendleton s  and  sympathizing  with  the 
family. 

Mr.  Briggs  was  now  very  busy  with  his  own  duties 
and  the  added  cares  of  the  Pendletons ;  but  the 
increased  burden  was  lightened  by  the  willingness  of 
the  family  to  do  whatever  the  administrator  suggest- 
ed ;  and  had  they  not  felt  called  upon  to  submit  so 
much  to  him  for  decision,  the  duties  would  not  have 
absorbed  so  much  of  his  time.  One  day,  when  Mr. 
Briggs  was  very  busy  about  his  farm  work,  Saul 
<3ame  down  the  hill  at  a  rapid  pace  and  demanded 
his  immediate  presence  at  the  house.  Feeling  that 
the  case  was  urgent,  he  responded,  expecting  to  find 
Seth  in  an  intoxicated  state  over  there  making  a 
disturbance,  as  he  was  the  only  member  of  the  fam- 
ily that  gave  him  any  trouble  whatever ;  but  on 
reaching  the  house  he  found  everything  quiet  and 
no  appearance  of  Seth's  having  been  there  for  some 
days.  The  occasion  of  the  call  was  ascertained 
when  Sally  opened  the  door  to  the  great  brick 
oven  and  showed  the  mop  that  Priscilla  had  placed 
there  to  dry.  They  had  been  baking  in  the  oven 
during  the  day,  and  there  being  a  little  heat  left, 
Priscilla  thought  it  a  good  time  to  dry  the  mop. 
This  was  out  of  the  regular  order  of  things.  The 
Pendletons  were  very  neat,  although  Hannah  did 
insinuate  that  such  was  not  the  case,  and  Sally  could 
not  allow  her  to  make  this  departure,  hence  a  dispute 
arose  which  seemed  to  be  coming  to  a  serious  pass 
when  it  was  decided  that  Mr.  Briggs  should  come, 
and  whatever  he  said  was  right  should  meet  with 
the  family  approval.  He  took  the  mop  from  the 
-oven  and,  after  giving  a  little  advice  as  to  some  phy- 


90  LEGENDS  OF  OLD  BEDFORD. 

sical  treatment,  returned  to  his  home,  somewhat 
amused,  to  be  sure,  yet  feeling  gratified  that  the  fam- 
ily were  so  ready  to  accept  his  decisions. 

In  regard  to  the  property,  the  law  was  to  direct 
the  division,  there  being  no  will.  The  contents  of 
the  mysterious  room  was  divided  very  soon,  each 
having  a  share.  Saul  was  to  carry  on  the  farm  for  a 
while  and  have  the  income  of  it  for  the  support  of 
his  mother,  while  the  girls  were  to  have  their  living 
at  home  as  long  as  they  remained  and  administered 
to  the  wants  of  her  who,  through  many  privations, 
had  faithfully  cared  for  them.  Saul  could  not  man- 
age the  work  of  the  farm  without  the  aid  of  his  sis- 
ters. They  were  as  handy  as  men  at  almost  any 
department  of  the  farm  work.  They  always  did  the 
milking,  and  could  hold  the  plough  as  skilfully  as 
Seth  or  Saul. 

Things  went  on  very  comfortably  for  a  season,  but 
new  burdens  were  to  be  taken  up  and  new  responsi- 
bilities were  to  be  assumed.  How  to  invest  the 
amounts  which  they  had  already  in  their  possession, 
was  an  important  question,  and  when  to  say  "  no  "  to 
the  various  parties  who  beset  them  on  every  hand 
with  all  sorts  of  attractions,  was  a  matter  difficult  to 
decide.  Hanson  Page  had  already  persuaded  Saul  to 
buy  his  "  brindles ''  at  a  fabulous  price,  and  a  long 
shining  chain  now  hung  from  his  homespun  waist- 
coat ;  but  the  watch  was  such  as  Ike  Fuller  would  be 
expected  to  sell,  and  not  to  be  relied  upon. 

It  was  fortunate  for  Sally  and  Priscilla  that  they 
had  taken  Mrs.  Briggs  for  an  adviser.  Dolly  was  a 
true  friend,  and  when  they  followed  her  advice  it 
was  to  their  advantage.  Many  who  had  made  sport 
of  the  Pendletons  in  earlier  years,  began  to  court 


THE    MYSTERIOUS    ROOM.  91 

their  society,  and,  I  am  sorry  to  say,  some  of  them 
sought  not  lor  the  companionship  of  the  members  of 
the  family  as  mncli  as  they  did  for  the  advantage 
which  they  might  get  over  them,  who,  in  almost 
every  transaction  where  money  was  involved,  were 
imposed  upon,  unless  they  took  the  advice  of  Mr. 
Briggs  or  his  wife.  The  reason  of  this  was  their 
neglected  childhood.  Never  having  been  trusted 
with  responsibilities  while  their  father  lived,  they 
knew  but  little  how  to  assume  them  now,  and  not 
having  had  money  to  spend  they  were  illy  prepared 
to  use  it  to  their  advantage  now  that  they  had  it  in 
their  possession. 

Mr.  Jones  had  completed  his  buildings,  and  for 
some  months  had  been  conducting  the  business  of  his 
farm  by  the  aid  of  a  housekeeper,  but  when  he  was 
obliged  to  conclude  that  he  was  not  wanted  to  fill  the 
pulpit  made  vacant  by  the  death  of  Mr.  Whitford,  he 
at  once  decided  that  he  could  manage  things  alone, 
so  dismissed  his  faithful  servant  and  decided  that  he 
would  not  try  to  make  his  home  attractive  to  the 
public. 

Early  in  the  spring  following  the  death  of  Mr. 
Pendleton,  Mr.  Jones  drove  one  afternoon  into  the 
Briggs'  yard,  tied  the  old  white  horse  to  the  block, 
and  pleasantly  saluted  Mrs.  Briggs,  who,  having  seen 
him  from  her  window,  was  at  the  door  before  he  had 
smoothed  down  the  wig  which  hid  his  bald  head  and 
scanty  gray  locks.  She  made  him  welcome.  He  was 
a  man  of  but  few  words,  and  when  he  had  any  busi- 
ness to  do,  came  to  it  without  indulging  in  many  pre- 
liminaries. It  was  an  uncommon  thing  for  Mr.  Jones 
to  call  in  this  way  at  the  home  of  the  Briggs',  hence 
Mrs.  Dolly  was  confident  that  something  important 


92  LEGENDS  OF  OLD  BEDFORD. 

and  uncommonly  pressing  had  caused  him  to    come 
out,  which  she  soon  found  to  be  the  case. 

"Mrs.  Briggs,  I  need  a  wife/'  he  abruptly  said, 
"and  I  have  come  to  secure  your  assistance  in  the 
matter." 

"Indeed,"  said  Mrs.  Briggs,  with  an  inflection  and 
look  that  awakened  courage  in  the  caller.  "'  This  is 
a  very  important  step  for  any  one  to  take,  and  it  is 
not  reasonable  to  suppose  that  every  one  can  fill  the 
important  position  of  a  minister's  wife.  Whom  were 
you  thinking  of  centering  your  affections  upon,  may  I 
ask?" 

"Well,  Mrs.  Briggs,"  said  Mr.  Jones,  giving  his 
chair  a  little  hitch  and  looking  at  either  side  to  be 
sure  that  no  one  was  near  to  overhear  the  secret  he 
was  about  to  entrust  to  her,  "I  had  been  thinking 
that  Priscilla  Pendleton  would  be  just  the  one  for 
me,  and  knowing  that  she  and  the  whole  family  are 
very  intimate  friends  of  yours,  I  have  called,  after 
much  prayerful  consideration,  to  ask  you  if  you 
would  be  so  kind  and  obliging  as  to  ascertain  if  a 
call  from  me  would  be  agreeable  to  Miss  Priscilla, 
the  younger  of  the  promising  ladies." 

"Perhaps  you  are  not  aware  that  it  is  a  plan  in 
the  family  that  Sally,  the  older,  must  be  married 
first,"  said  Mrs.  Briggs. 

"  Yes,  madam,  I  am  aware  of  that ;  but  perhaps  as 
they  are  now  differently  situated,  they  may  be  will- 
ing to  abandon  that  plan,"  replied  the  persistent 
seeker. 

On  receiving  a  favorable  reply  from  Mrs.  Briggs, 
the  clergyman  retired,  promising  to  call  in  a  few 
days  and  learn  what  impression  was  made  by  the 
proposition.      The  call  and  the  occasion  of  it  were 


THE    MYSTERIOUS    ROOM.  93 

reported  to  Mr.  Briggs  on  his  arrival  home,  and  they 
both  concluded  that  even  the  minister  had  an  eye  to 
this  world's  goods,  and  both  feared  that  it  was 
money  which  he  was  seeking  for,  as  well  as  a  wife, 
but  it  was  evident  to  all  that  he  did  need  a  compan- 
ion, and  Mr.  and  Mrs.  Briggs  both  thought  he  was 
wise  in  his  choice. 

Betsey,  a  black-eyed  niece  of  Mrs.  Briggs,  had 
recently  come  to  make  her  home  with  her  aunt,  and 
had  now  for  the  first  time  learned  something  of  the 
Pendleton  family,  as  she  had  overheard  the  conver- 
sation between  her  aunt  and  Mr.  Jones. 

Mrs.  Briggs  was  as  good  as  her  word,  and  soon 
called  on  the  Pendletons  and  laid  the  matter  before 
the  family.  At  first  Sally  made  strong  objections, 
and  insisted  that  as  she  was  the  older  she  must  be 
married  first,  and  that  by  right  she  ought  to  have  the 
proposal ;  yet  when  convinced  that  the  minister  was 
decided  and  that  it  must  be  Priscilla  or  neither,  she 
reluctantly  concluded  that  she  would  give  way  and 
let  Priscilla  have  the  offer,  realizing  that  this  might 
make  way  for  herself. 

Mrs.  Briggs  soon  made  it  convenient  to  inform  Mr. 
Jones  that  his  attention  would  be  agreeably  received, 
and  he  promised  to  call  again  and  notify  her  when 
the  first  visit  should  be  made ;  as  she  had  confiden- 
tially suggested  to  make  a  head  dress  for  Priscilla 
that  she  might  be  in  an  attractive  attire  when  the 
clergyman  should  make  his  first  call,  believing  that 
first  impressions  were  lasting. 

Betsey  had  some  modern  ideas  of  millinery  and 
promised  to  aid  her  aunt  in  the  work  of  preparing 
Priscilla  for  the  visit.  The  Pendleton  girls  were  not 
very  particular  about  their  dress  when  about  home, 


94  LEGENDS  OF  OLD  BEDFORD. 

and  Mrs.  Briggs  was  in  hopes  to  have  an  opportunity 
to  procure  lace,  and  with  the  assistance  of  her  niece, 
to  make  a  tasty  cap  for  Priscilla  before  the  first 
meeting ;  but  before  the  opportunity  came,  as  Mrs. 
Briggs  was  leaving  her  home  with  the  purpose  of 
calling  on  the  Pen  die  tons  for  an  afternoon  chat,  she 
looked  down  the  road  towards  the  village  and  saw 
Mr.  Jones'  white-faced  horse  coming  towards  her. 
Believing  that  the  minister  was  out  for  the  important 
call,  she  started  Josiah  across  lots  to  notify  Miss 
Priscilla  that  she  might  make  preparations.  When 
Mr.  Jones  overtook  Mrs.  Briggs,  he  drew  up  his 
horse  and  asked  her  to  ride,  telling  her  that  he  was 
about  to  make  the  proposed  call.  Mrs.  Briggs  felt  it 
to  be  her  duty  to  reprimand  the  reverend  gentleman, 
a  very  bold  thing  for  any  one  to  do  in  those  days. 
Said  she,  "  You  are  not  doing  according  to  your  agree- 
ment, for  you  promised  to  give  me  due  notice,  and  I 
had  arranged  to  notify  the  lady.  I  am  afraid  she 
won't  be  ready  for  this  call." 

"Never  mind  about  that,"  said  the  suitor,  "  I  shan't 
be  so  likely  to  be  deceived." 

If  they  had  known  what  was  in  his  heart,  they 
would  have  seen  that  it  was  not  necessary  to  make 
any  change  in  dress,  for  truly,  I  must  confess,  that  it 
afterwards  proved  that  money  was  the  first  object  of 
Mr.  Jones'  search,  and  a  wife  was  a  secondary  matter. 
A  clergyman  should  have  had  a  better  motive,  as 
a  minister  of  the  gospel  is  expected  to  be  exemplary 
in  every  particular.  While  driving  leisurely  along, 
the  old  horse  came  to  a  sudden  stop. 

"  Is  your  horse  contrary,  Mr.  Jones  ?  "  said  his 
companion. 


THE    MYSTERIOUS    ROOM.  95 

"No  —  no,"  replied  the  clergyman;  "he  has  only- 
stopped  to  take  breath." 

With  his  lungs  well  inflated,  he  started  on  and 
soon  reached  the  top  of  the  hill.  While  Mr.  Jones 
was  making  his  horse  secure,  Mrs.  Briggs  hastened  in 
to  the  aid  of  Priscilla,  who  Avas  already  doing  her 
best  to  make  a  fine  appearance,  Josiah  having  warned 
her  of  the  coming  event.  It  was  in  the  same  room 
that  Amariah  Quimby  received  his  lasting  rebuff,  that 
Rev.  Mr.  Jones  met  a  cordial  welcome ;  but  things 
had  changed  —  some  years  had  passed,  age  was  creep- 
ing on,  making  unmistakable  furrows  in  the  faces  of 
both  Sally  and  her  fairer  sister ;  the  tyrant  had  been 
called  from  his  den ;  the  mysterious  room  had  given 
up  its  contents;  its  treasures  were  divided,  and  in 
some  instances  were  being  rapidly  scattered.  Mrs. 
Briggs  managed  soon  to  have  an  excuse  for  leaving 
the  room  and  succeeded  in  calling  out  the  mother  and 
Sally  as  well,  so  that  the  room  was  left  with  only  two 
occupants,  and  no  more  were  wanted. 


ELEVENTH  EVENING. 

HILE  Mrs.  Briggs  was  at  the  Pendletons 
ihwiis  with  Mr.  Jones,  Mr.  Briggs  took  a  walk 
<jr^^^^  over  the  hill  through  "  Love  Lane  "  to  Dea- 
con Sprague's  to  look  at  some  cattle,  and  as  the  road 
lay  by  Seth  Pendleton's,  he  dropped  in  to  say  a  neigh- 
borly word.     On  entering  the  room  he  plainly  saw  by 


96  LEGENDS  OF  OLD  BEDFORD. 

the  ai^pearance  of  Patty,  that  things  were  not  going 
on  altogether  right,  and  he  asked  for  Seth.  Patty 
hesitated  at  first,  but  finally,  in  a  discouraged  man- 
ner, did  say,  "  I  may  as  well  tell  you  the  whole  mat- 
ter. I  know  you  are  friendly  towards  us  and  will  not 
unkindly  expose  our  misfortunes,  Seth  has  not  been 
himself  at  all  since  you  paid  him  his  share  of  the 
money.  You  know  he  went  right  off  and  bought  that 
horse  and  chaise,  and  he  has  been  riding  ever  since  ; 
and  Ike  Puller  and  Hanson  Page  have  been  with  him 
continually,  one  or  the  other  being  away  with  him  all 
the  time.  To  be  sure  he  provides  enough  to  eat,  but 
beside  that  I  have  not  seen  a  dollar  and  I  don't 
know  what  he  is  doing  with  it." 

Here  Patty  hesitated,  but  soon  started  again,  as  if 
determined  to  secrete  her  troubles  no  longer. 

"  I  believe  that  Ike  Fuller  is  not  hanging  around 
Seth  from  any  good  motive,  and  as  for  Hanson  Page, 
I  think  he'd  better  stay  at  home  with  his  wife,  for 
there  she  is,  poor  woman,  and  can't  get  out  at  all." 

"Where  is  Seth  to-day?  "  interrupted  Mr.  Briggs. 

"Oh,  he  hasn't  been  off  the  bed  yet,"  said  Patty, 

"He  didn't  get  home  till  almost  morning,  and  then 
he  was  so  much  the  worse  for  liquor,  that  I  had  to 
put  the  horse  in  the  stable ;  and  I  have  done  all  the 
chores  at  the  barn.  Now,  Mr.  Briggs,"  she  continued,. 
"I  am  about  discouraged,  and  sometimes  wish  his 
father  had  not  left  a  cent.  When  Seth  is  at  home  he 
is  either  half  drunk  or  scolding  about  Saul  and  the 
girls,  who,  he  says,  are  getting  more  than  he  is ;  but 
I  know,  and  so  does  he  when  he  is  sober,  that  you  are 
doing  everything  right,  and  that  they  ought  to  have 
their  living  from  the  farm  if  they  stay  and  take  care 
of  their  mother." 


THE    MYSTERIOUS    ROOM.  97 

/ 

"  Yes ;  and  jou  know  that  this  farm  was  a  gift 
right  out  to  Seth  by  his  father,"  said  Mr.  Briggs. 

"I  know  it,"  sadly  replied  Patty,  "and  I  wish  I 
had  never  "  — 

At  this  time  in  stepped  Joe  Nibbs,  who  was  a 
brother  to  Hannah ;  he  had  been  away  for  some  years, 
but  had  lately  come  home  to  take  charge  of  the  farm 
and  look  after  his  mother  with  the  aid  of  his  sister. 

"They  do  tell  me,"  said  Joe,  "that  Ike  Fuller  is 
going  to  build  a  barn  right  off,  and  Hannah  says  his 
wife  told  her  they  had  money  enough  on  hand  to  put 
it  right  up  and  have  no  mortgage  on  it  either. .  Now, 
I  don't  see  through  it,"  said  Joe,  "for  Ike  don't 
attend  to  his  affairs  half  as  well  as  some  of  them 
round  here,  and  they  couldn't  build  a  barn  if  they 
wanted  to,  and  can't  pay  off  what  they  do  owe  on  the 
old  one,  half  of  them ;  but  Hannah  says,  and  she 
knows,  for  she  has  got  it  right  from  Huldah,  that  Ike 
has  had  great  luck  lately  and  struck  some  fine  bar- 
gains, so  they  are  going  to  have  a  right  smart  barn." 

"  Indeed,"  said  Mr.  Briggs,  "  this  is  news.  I  knew 
that  Mr.  Fuller  needed  a  barn,  and  so  do  I,  but  I  liad 
not  learned  that  he  felt  equal  to  building  at  present. 
I  guess  the  watch  speculation  is  profitable  just  now." 

Patty  did  venture  to  say,  "I  guess  he  wouldn't 
have  built  a  barn  if  Mr.  Pendleton  had  lived ;  poor, 
foolish  man  he  was,  to  deny  his  family  the  comforts 
of  life  and  a  respectable  schooling,  and  leave  his 
money  to  be  wasted  in  this  maner,  just  thrown  away 
by  his  own  children." 

Tlie  appearance  of  Seth  from  the  bed-room  put  a 
sudden  stop  to  Patty's  sensible  remarks.  One  needed 
to  take  but  a  look  at  Seth  to  know  it  all.  Ike  Fuller 
and  others  had  taken  the  advantage  of  his  ignorance 


98  LEGENDS  OF  OLD  BEDFORD. 

and  weakness  and  persuaded  him  to  drink  repeatedly, 
until  lie  was  becoming  a  confirmed  drunkard;  and 
these  continued  drives  from  home  were  bringing  des- 
olation upon  the  farm,  sorrow  to  his  neglected  fam- 
ily, and  shame  and  ruin  to  himself.  Patty  did  what 
she  could  in  caring  for  the  stock  and  looking  after 
affairs  outside  ;  but  these  duties,  added  to  the  care  of 
three  children,  were  too  much  for  any  woman,  and 
she  was  losing  courage,  thus  making  the  outlook 
very  bad  for  the  occupants  of  the  Simpson  farm. 
Many  women,  under  better  circumstances,  would  have 
lost  courage  long  before  Patty  did,  but  she  was  a  true 
wife  and  mother,  and  as  such,  struggled  on,  bending 
more  and  more  in  both  mind  and  body  as  the  burden 
grew  heavy  and  this  troublesome  journey  lengthened. 

When  Seth  realized  that  Mr.  Briggs  was  present, 
he  tried  to  appear  decently,  but  it  was  with  diffi- 
culty that  he  walked  across  the  room,  and  seeing  the 
real  state  of  affairs,  the  good  neighbor  left  the  house, 
wishing  he  could  do  something  to  bring  about  a 
change  in  that  home. 

Mr.  Briggs  went  on  to  Deacon  Sprague's,  looked  at 
the  cattle  with  an  eye  to  purchasing,  then  hastened 
home  to  find  his  good  wife  Dolly  with  Betsey  and 
the  boys,  waiting  tea  for  him.  When  seated  about 
the  table  they  reported  the  experiences  of  the  after- 
noon, while  George,  Josiah  and  their  black-eyed 
cousin  gave  more  heed  to  the  reports  than  to  the 
food  before  them. 

"  I  was  never  more  amused  than  during  my  visit 
this  afternoon,"  said  Dolly.  "We  were  all  in  the 
best  room  together,  when  I  felt  that  Mr.  Jones  was 
being  placed  in  a  very  trying  position,  so  I  managed 
to  leave  the  room,  and  Sally  and  her  mother  followed 


THE    MYSTERIOUS    ROOM.  99 

me,  which  left  Mr.  Jones  and  Priscilla  alone,  just 
what  I  suppose  they  wanted.  Mother  Pendleton, 
Sally  and  I  sat  down  for  a  good  visit  as  I  expected, 
but  in  less  than  twenty  minutes  from  the  time  we 
left  the  room,  Priscilla  came  out  looking  wonderfully 
smiling,  followed  by  Mr.  Jones,  who  entered  into 
conversation  with  Mother  and  Sally.  Priscilla  called 
me  into  the  cheese  room,  and  when  she  was  sure  we 
were  alone  and  away  from  the  hearing  of  any  one, 
she  said,  *What  shall  I  get  for  my  wedding  gown?  ' 
This,  I  must  confess,  surprised  me,  but  I  found  that 
the  case  was  fully  settled  and  they  were  engaged. 
Priscilla  wants  to  do  everything  up  in  grand  style, 
but,  poor  woman,  she  knows  very  little  of  the  world, 
and  I  fear,  by  this  unreasonable  haste,  shows  that 
she  does  not  fully  realize  what  a  great  change  she  is 
about  to  make.  I  only  hope  it  Avill  prove  a  wise  step 
and  that  Mr.  Jones  will  make  her  a  kind  husband, 
and  I  fully  believe  she  will  do  her  best  to  fill  the 
position.  Priscilla  is  so  utterly  incapable  of  going  to 
town  to  make  the  needful  purchases,  I  have  con- 
sented to  go  to  Boston  with  her,  and  she  wants  to  go 
immediately.  I  believe  she  is  fully  as  anxious  to 
bring  the  serious  matter  to  a  close  as  Mr.  Jones  is, 
and  when  you  can  make  it  convenient,  I  wish  you 
would  drive  us  to  Boston  and  aid  in  the  purchases'. 
If  left  alone  with  her  inexperience  she  is  liable  to  be 
imposed  upon.  Those  clerks  will  give  one  anything 
for  dress  fabric  and  trimmings  when  they  see  that  a 
customer  is  not  posted  as  to  the  fashions  and  is  not 
accustomed  to  making  selections.  All  the  neighbors 
will  blame  us  if  anything  in  her  outfit  is  not  appro- 
priate.    There  will  be  one  pleasant  feature  about  this 


lOO  LEGKXDS  OF  OLD  BEDFORD. 

business,  Priscilla  has  a  plenty  of  money  and  there's 
no  need  of  economizing." 

''  Y-es  ;  and  I  don't  know  but  it  may  as  well  be 
spent  in  that  way  as  to  go  as  I  feel  that  Seth's  is 
going,"  said  Mr.  Briggs.  "ISTow  that  you  have  told 
your  experience  this  afternoon,  I  will  tell  mine." 

"  Oh,  did  you  buy  father's  cows  ? "  interrupted 
Dolly. 

''No,  I  did  not,"  was  the  reply.  I.  called  in  to 
Seth's  on  the  way  and  was  so  troubled  by  what  I  saw 
and  learned,  that  I  did  not  feel  like  making  an  oifer 
just  then,  and  your  father  was  engaged  with  some 
people  on  church  business." 

"What  is  the  trouble  at  Seth's?"  interrupted 
Dolly  again ;  whereupon  Mr.  Briggs  told  the  whole 
story  and  what  Joe  Nibbs  had  told  them  about  Ike 
Fuller's  building  prospects. 

"  I  declare,"  said  Dolly,  ''  1  suppose  it  won't  do  for 
any  one  to  say  what  they  think ;  but  what  a  pity  it  is 
that  these  Pendletons  hadn't  been  allowed  to  mingle 
more  with  the  world  and  been  educated  a  little  so  as 
to  have  more  judgment  in  their  dealings  with  these 
smooth-tongued  fellows  who  pretend  to  be  so  very 
friendly,  and  are  nothing  but  wolves  in  sheep's  cloth- 
ing." 

"I  have  feared  for  a  long  time-  that  Seth's  old 
appetite  was  getting  the  mastery  of  him,"  said  Mr. 
Briggs,  thoughtfully ;  but  I  don't  know  what  can  be 
done ;  there  is  no  Mr.  Whitford  to  talk  to  him  now. 
When  he  signed  the  pledge,  he  was  led  to  it  by  the 
persuasions  of  the  deacon,  who,  he  thought,  would 
aid  him  in  getting  Patty  if  he  should  gratify  him  by 
signing,  and  joining  the  temperance  society ;  but 
there   is  no   such  motive   to  impel  him  to  keep  his 


THE    MYSTKRIOUS    ROOM.  101 

pledge,  ''and  in  fact,  every  influence  is  on  the  other 
side,  for  his  companions  now  are  so  unlike  those  who 
aided  him  at  that  time." 

"  But,"  said  Dolly,  "are  not  the  good  people  of  that 
temperance  society  to  blame  for  allowing  Seth  to 
drift  away  from  them  and  their  influence,  and  giving 
these  bad  people  a  chance  to  overpower  him  in  this 
way  ;  and  must  we  not  take  a  little  of  the  blame  to 
ourselves  ?  " 

"Possibly  we  are  at  fault,"  said  Mr.  Briggs,  with 
an  apparent  twinge  of  conscience,  "  but  what  is  to  be 
done  ?  If  I  go  to  making  myself  too  conspicuous  in 
the  case.  Fuller  and  Page  and  such  men  will  try  to 
make  Seth  believe  that  I  am  aiming  to  do  what  we 
think  these  evil-minded  men  are  doing." 

"Sure  enough,"  said  Dolly.  "Oh,  if  Mr.  Whit- 
ford  was  alive ;  but  it  is  useless  to  talk  about  that, 
the  good  Heavenly  Father  has  called  him  home,  and 
it  is  the  duty  of  the  people  to  do  the  more  now  that 
'he  is  gone.  I  think  that  is  one  of  the  best  ways  for  a 
person  to  show  regard  for  a  friend  who  is  called  from 
■^his  earth." 

"That  is  very  true,"  said  Mr.  Briggs,  "but  my 
one  and  only  objection  to  organizations  for  reform  of 
all  kinds,  as  you  well  know,  is  their  spasmodic  way 
of  conducting  them.  They  will  get  aroused  and  make 
a  great  effort  for  a  time  and  draw  in  large  numbers, 
many  of  whom  are  brought  in  through  excitement, 
and  when  that  subsides,  the  most  active  fail  to  keep 
up  their  enthusiasm,  and  those  who  are  not  firm  of 
purpose  drop  off  and  by  their  conduct  often  bring 
reproach  upon  the  cause.  Seth's  case  is  just  an  illus- 
tration." 

"I  know  the  ground  on  which  you  base  your  objec- 


102  LEGENDS  OF  OLD  BEDFORD. 

tions,"  said  Dolly ;  "  but  did  you  throw  away  all 
those  bank  notes  that  you  found  in  Mr.  Pendleton's 
room  just  because  some  proved  to  be  worthiest  ?  " 

Here  the  conversation  was  brought  to  a  sudden 
close  by  the  appearance  of  Hannah  Nibbs,  who  "  just 
dropped  in  for  a  few  moments/'  as  she  said,  but 
which  proved  to  be  for  some  hours.  Hannah  was 
not  in  the  habit  of  making  short  calls.  She  had  been 
very  careful  about  calling  at  Mr.  Briggs'  since  she 
left  so  unceremoniously ;  but  now  having  a  new  topic 
for  discussion,  it  was  impossible  for  her  to  keep  away. 
Betsey's  black  eyes  and  keen  wit  furnished  not  a  lit- 
tle attraction,  while  this  new  member  of  the  Briggs 
family  saw  in  Hannah  a  most  interesting  character. 

"I  guess  Patty  Potter  is  sick  of  her  bargain  by 
this  time,"  were  the  first  words  that  Hannah  said  on 
entering  the  house,  and  she  had  part  of  her  salutation 
expressed  before  she  was  seated.  "They  tell  me 
that  Seth  is  drunk  half  his  time,  and  he  isn't  any  too 
kind  either,"  she  continued.  "  It's  plain  enough  to  be 
seen  that  all  he  joined  the  temperance  society  for 
was  to  get  Patty.  I  thought  so  then;  I  wouldn't 
have  had  him  if  he  had  signed  the  pledge  a  dozen 
times.  I  know  what  them  Pendletons  are,  although 
the  gals  do  step  so  fine  now  they  have  got  a  lot  of 
money ;  if  they  don't  look  out  it  will  go  as  Seth's  is 
going.  Yes;  go  to  build  a  barn  for  Ike  Puller.  I 
don't  care  what  anybody  says,  I  just  speak  right  out 
what  I  think,  and  it's  what  everybody  else  thinks  too. 
And  they  say  Priscilla  is  going  to  have  Priest  Jones." 

"Who  says  that?"  exclaimed  Dolly,  supposing  no 
one  could  have  learned  of  the  call  so  soon. 

"Who  ?  I  guess  you  know  all  about  it.  Your 
Josiah  is  pretty  close  mouthed,  I  know,  but  he  did 


THE    MYSTERIOUS    ROOM.  103 

tell  Ned  Page  where  lie  had  been  this  afternoon  and 
what  his  errand  was,  and  I  was  down  to  see  Ned's 
mother  when  he  came  home  and  told  it,  so  Hepsy 
and  I  just  put  our  heads  together  and  studied  it  out. 
Poor  Hepsy,  she  is  so  lame,  and  she  does  so  long  to 
get  out  and  see  folks  and  get  the  news  too.  Why, 
she  says  it  is  as  good  as  a  sewing  meeting  to  her  to 
have  me  come  down,  and  if  I  can  do  any  good  in  that 
way  I  am  sure  I  am  willing  to  do  it.  I  do  think  peo- 
ple ought  to  be  more  willing  to  do  good  in  the  world 
now  that  Mr.  Whitford  is  gone.  But  poor  Patty  — 
she  ought  to  have  known  better  than  to  have  taken 
that  awkward  Seth  Pendleton ;  and  I  should  think 
them  folks  that  helped  along  the  match  would  feel  a 
little  disturbed  by  things  at  the  Simpson  farm. 
Patty  is  welcome  to  all  she  can  get  out  of  that  farm. 
I  hope  Priscilla  will  make  out  better.  I  should  think 
some  folks  would  be  more  careful  how  they  help  on 
these  matches ;  but  perhaps  they  can  get  some  of 
that  money  if  they  only  help  the  gals  get  married.  I 
hope  Priscilla  will  be  a  better  housekeeper  in  her 
own  home  than  she  has  ever  been  yet." 

The  soliloquy,  for  such  it  seemed,  being  directed 
to  no  one  in  particular,  was  brought  to  a  close,  or  the 
subject  changed,  by  a  word  from  Mr.  Briggs,  who 
roguishly  said,  "I  have  heard  that  Saul  is  paying 
his  visits  rather  more  often  than  has  been  his  habit, 
to  the  Nibbs  family." 

"  Yes,"  said  Hannah,  as  she  rose  to  go,  "  Joe  and 
he  always  were  intimate." 

It  was  decided  that  the  Boston  trip  should  be  made 
early  in  the  next  week,  and  Dolly,  in  the  meantime, 
was  to  make  out  a  list  of  the  articles  to  be  bought, 
whicli  she  faithfully  did.  . 


104  LEGENDS  OF  OLD  BEDFORD. 

The  time  for  closing  an  evening's  story  had  arrived.  The 
tall  clock  that  stood  in  the  corner  had  struck  nine,  and  grand- 
ma arose  to  draw  up  the  weights,  pausing  to  hastily  add  a  few 
practical  remarks  by  which  she  hoped  to  make  a  lasting  im- 
pression on  the  boy,  who  i?at  at  her  knee  and  eagerly  drank  in 
€very  word  of  her  story.  Said  grandma,  "  I  want  you  to  learn 
from  the  facts  that  I  have  given  you  this  evening  the  folly  of 
living  for  money,  if  you  have  not  already  been  sufficiently  im- 
pressed with  the  lessons  of  former  evenings,  and  also  to  see  that 
the  evils  of  such  conduct  do  not  fall  entirely  on  one  ijerson,  and 
quite  often  not  upon  the  one  who  is  in  the  wrong.  Mr.  Pen- 
dleton lived  for  money,  but  much  of  the  evil  of  his  wrong 
doing  fell  upon  his  children  as  you  see,  and  will  yet  learn  that 
his  good,  pure-hearted  wife  was  also  a  sufferer. 


TWELFTH  EVENING. 

)AEKI]Sr'S  shop  was  alive  with  the  notes  of  the 
j^  town-folks  who  dropped  in  for  a  little  chat, 
^  and  the  various  speakers  did  not  hesitate  to 
comment  on  the  prospects  of  Ike  Fuller.  The  round- 
faced  man  showed  a  good  deal  of  feeling  over  the 
downfall  of  Seth,  and  was  the  only  one  known  to 
make  a  personal  effort  to  reclaim  the  unfortunate 
man  and  relieve  Patty  of  her  trouble  ;  but  his  efforts 
were  of  little  avail. 

That  the  report  was  correct  was  soon  apparent,  for 
Ike  Fuller  had  a  gang  of  men  at  work  laying  the  cel- 
lar wall,  and  the  lot  of  noble  oaks  on  Seth  Pendleton's 
farm  were  fast  being  cut  and  hewn  for  the  building. 
"  What  did  I  tell  you  ?  "  said  Hannah,  one  morn- 


THE    MYSTERIOUS    ROOM.  105 

ing  as  Mr.  Briggs  was  passing  the  Nibbs  house. 
"  How  much  do  you  suppose  Ike  Fuller  pays  for  them 
oaks  that  Hezekiah  Pendleton  watched  so  many 
years,  hey  ?  "  continued  Hannah. 

"I  don't  know,  I  am  sure,"  said  Mr.  Briggs;  "but  we 
have  no  right  to  say  that  he  does  not  pay  all  they  are 
worth.  The  timber  belongs  to  Seth  and  he  is  at  lib- 
erty to  dispose  of  it  as  he  pleases.  It  is  grand  tim- 
ber that  they  are  getting  out,  and  I  see  no  reason  why 
they  may  not  put  up  a  superior  barn,  and  I  hope  Mr. 
Fuller  will  enjoy  it,  for  to  be  sure  he  needs  it  very 
much." 

"I  tell  Joe,"  said  Hannah,  "that  he  had  better 
renew  his  acquaintance  with  Seth  and  see  if  we  canH 
have  a  new  barn  as  well  as  Ike." 

"Now,  Miss  Nibbs,"  said  Mr.  Briggs,  "you  don't 
mean  that  you  would  have  a  barn  obtained  by  any 
unfair  or  underhanded  means." 

"No,  to  be  sure  not,"  replied  Hannah,  just  as  her 
mother  came  forward  and  offered  Mr.  Briggs  a  pinch 
of  snuff,  while  taking  some  herself.  Mrs.  Nibbs  was 
noted  for  being  the  greatest  snuff-taker  in  the  neigh- 
borhood, and  always  had  the  best  quality  of  Bappee 
and  Maccoboy  mixed.  Mr.  Briggs  commented  on  the 
weather,  but  the  good  woman  failing  to  hear,  cried 
out,  "Meditating,  as  usual."  With  a  gentlemanly 
salutation,  Mr.  Briggs  hastened  on  his  way. 

It  was  the  custom  for  people  to  prepare  their  tim- 
ber for  building  in  the  winter,  when  the  work  of  the 
farm  was  not  so  pressing  as  in  the  spring  and  sum- 
mer, and  when  the  sap  was  not  so  active.  The  fact 
that  Fuller  allowed  the  winter  to  pass,  also  the  early 
spring  months,  before  he  began  his  work  of  felling 
the   stately  oaks,  caused   those  who  were   the   least 


106  LEGENDS  OF  OLD  BEDFORD. 

inclined  to  suspect  wrong  of  their  neighbors  to  be  a 
little  suspicious  that  everything  was  not  straight  in 
the  purchase  of  this  timber  of  Seth  Pendleton ;  and 
it  seemed  utterly  impossible  for  Fuller  to  get  his 
barn  ready  for  the  hay  when  harvested.  After  some 
weeks,  during  which  there  was  much  discussion 
through  the  community,  all  hands  were  bidden  to  the 
raising  at  EuUer's.  Joshua  Paine  was  the  master 
builder,  and  he  had  a  large  gang  of  workmen,  who 
could  drink  as  much  hard  cider  as  any  men  in  the 
country;  they  could  also  do  as  much  work  as  any 
company  of  laborers  of  equal  number. 

The  day  was  clear  and  calm  in  the  morning,  and  all 
things  looked  favorable  for  a  successful  raising ;  but 
to  Hannah  there  seemed  to  appear  an  omen  of  evil, 
for  a  crow  chanced  to  light  on  a  tree  near  the  piles  of 
lumber. 

In  those  days  the  building  was  framed  and  put 
together  on  the  ground,  and  raised  one  side  at  a  time, 
being  pulled  into  an  erect  position  by  the  great  com- 
pany that  always  gathered  for  the  purpose,  with  the 
expectation  of  being  treated  to  a  good  feast  and  a 
plenty  of  strong  drink,  according  to  the  custom. 
Boys  were  there  as  well  as  men,  and  not  a  few  women 
aided  in  preparing  the  dinner.  Hannah  was  leader 
in  the  house,  for  Mrs.  Fuller  was  in  poor  health,  and 
Hannah  always  had  so  much  sympathy,  and  not  a 
little  curiosity,  that  she  volunteered  to  be  present, 
and  but  few  could  be  found  in  all  the  village  who 
were  as  capable  and  willing  as  she,  and  her  strength, 
with  her  power  of  endurance,  led  many  to  call  upon 
her,  when  some  one  less  inclined  to  comment  would 
have  been  preferred. 

I  regret  to  say  that  at  Fuller's  raising,  three  tubs 


THE    MYSTERIOUS    ROOM.  107 

were  brought  out,  and  early  in  the  day,  were  filled  to 
the  brim  with  as  many  kinds  of  drink  and  of  different 
degrees  of  strength.  It  was  for  the  free  use  of  the 
workmen,  and  those  who  looked  on  also,  and  the  latter 
never  failed  to  exercise  that  right.  Before  the  work 
began  it  was  the  custom  for  the  clergyman  of  the 
town  to  offer  prayer,  and  as  the  society  had  not  yet 
called  one  to  fill  the  vacant  desk,  Mr.  Jones  was 
invited  and  performed  the  service  to  the  gratification 
of  all.  Hepsy  Page,  who  had  been  brought  over, 
despite  her  lameness,  in  Seth  Pendleton's  chaise, 
remarked  that  she  thought  Mr.  Jones  would  make  a 
good  pastor  for  them,  and  as  he  had  settled  in  town 
it  would  be  convenient  for  him  and  for  the  people. 
Having  a  home  already  established,  they  would  not 
be  expected  to  give  him  a  settlement  fee.  Hannah 
ventured  to  say  in  reply,  "  He  might  do  well  enough, 
but  what  sort  of  a  minister's  wife  would  Priscilla 
Pendleton  make  ?  " 

All  agreed  with  Hannah  that  she  was  not  one 
whom  they  could  respect  as  they  had  Mrs.  Whitford. 

Hannah  brought  that  conversation  to  a  close  by  say- 
ing, "  If  Mr.  Jones  is  so  foolish  as  to  take  Priscilla 
Pendleton  for  a  wife,  and  that  is  what  he  is  going  to 
do,  why,  we  won't  have  him  for  our  minister." 

A  grand  hurrah  from  the  assembled  crowd  attracted 
the  attention  of  the  women,  and  by  one  pull  the  first 
side  was  put  in  an  upright  position  and  held  there, 
while  Paine  hastened  from  stick  to  stick  and  drove 
the  fastening  pins.  Soon  the  opposite  side  was  up, 
and  the  ends  were  in  place  before  many  hours ;  thus 
the  long  anticipated  job  was  well  under  way  before 
Hannah  Nibbs  was   ready  to  serve  the  great  feast, 


108  LEGENDS  OF  OLD  BEDFORD. 

having  given  them  a  lunch  earlier,  "just  to  stay  their 
stomachs/'  she  said. 

While  the  company  was  disposing  of  the  ham  of 
Fuller's  best  curing  and  the  eggs,  Hannah  doing  her 
best  in  serving,  one  of  the  youths  who  was  waiting 
for  the  second  sitting  was  heard  to  say,  "  Do  you  see 
that  cloud  over  there  coming  from  the  north  ?  " 

"  Yes,"  was  the  word  that  came  from  Hannah,  who 
was  passing  the  door  at  the  time  and  stopped  to 
reply,  although  she  had  not  seen  it  or  thought  of  it 
until  she  heard  the  voice  outside  ;  but  her  desire  to 
be  the  first  to  see  or  know  anything  always  kept  her 
ready  to  make  a  reply,  and  sometimes  placed  her  in  an 
awkward  position,  especially  when  she  gave  an  answer 
that  was  the  very  opposite  from  what  she  would  have 
given  had  she  understood  the  nature  of  the  question. 
"Yes,  I  see  it,"  said  Hannah,  "and  it  is  just  what  I 
expected.     That  crow  meant  something,  I  knew." 

By  the  time  the  boys  were  seated  at  the  table  for 
their  share  in  the  feast,  the  cloud  had  become  very 
large  and  the  wind  was  fast  rising.  Paine,  fearing 
bad  results,  and  knowing  that  the  frame  would  not 
stand  through  a  great  blow  in  its  present  condition, 
ordered  all  hands  at  work  to  make  it  more  secure  ;  but 
a  sudden  gust,  then  a  whirl  of  wind,  together  with 
hail  and  rain,  dashed  down  upon  them  before  they 
were  aware  of  it,  and  this  was  followed  by  others  of 
increased  violence,  until  a  wrench,  a  twist,  and  a 
crash  settled  the  whole,  and  the  frame  of  the  building 
was  brought  to  the  ground.  The  timber  was  in  a 
more  useless  condition  than  before  it  was  taken  from 
Seth  Pendleton's  lot ;  but  worse  than  all  that,  two  of 
the  young  men  were  killed  by  the  falling  timbers. 


THE    MYSTERIOUS    ROOM. 


109 


While  the  living  were  exerting  every  muscle  to  re- 
move the  mass  of  timbers  in  order  to  get  at  the  life- 
less forms,  after  the  dreadful  cloud  passed  over,  Han- 
nah was  hastening  from  man  to  man,  exclaiming,  "  I 
told  you  so  ;  that  crow  was  a  warning ;  and  what  will 
poor  Amy  say  when  she  knows  her  Thad  is  dead  ?  " 


I 


The  Crow  and  the  Raising. 


One  of  the  unfortunate  workmen  was^ngaged  to  a 
promising  young  lady  who  had  not  appeared  at  the 
raising,  and  Hannah  at  once  aroused  her  sympathy 
for  the  one  who  soon  must  know  that  her  fondest 
hopes  were  blasted.  The  living  soon  separated,  to 
return  to  their  homes,  and  the  dead  were  given  Chris- 
tian attention;  but  Larkin's  shop  still  kept  up  its 
busy  hum,  and  the  company  again  gathered  there  to 
exchange  regrets  and  speculate  on  the  cause  of  the 
calamity. 


110  LEGENDS  OF  OLD  BEDFORD. 

"The  innocent  must  suffer  with  the  guilty,"  said 
Mr.  Spencer,  continuing  to  base  his  ideas  on  the 
Scriptures.  "If  Ike  Fuller  got  the  timbers  for  his 
barn  in  an  underhanded  way,  and  this  storm  was 
directed  by  God  as  a  punishment  for  his  evil  doing, 
why,  Thaddeus  Peterson  and  Jacob  Paine  were  the 
innocent  who  have  been  cut  off,  while  Fuller  still 
remains. 


THIRTEENTH  EVENING. 

|[|^N  the  appointed  day,  Mr.  and  Mrs.  Briggs, 
with  Priscilla,  made  the  important  trip  to 
f^  Boston.  The  Pendleton  girls  had  both  been 
in  Boston  several  times,  and  Priscilla  was  not  so 
ignorant  of  city  ways  as  one  would  have  expected; 
but  she  often  did  and  said  things  while  on  this  shop- 
ping trip  that  brought  mortification  to  her  compan- 
ions, and  gave  occasion  for  much  sport  on  the  part  of 
the  clerks. 

Her  money  was  carried  in  a  bead  bag  or  purse 
that  she  had  borrowed  for  the  day  of  Mrs  Briggs ;  it 
was  well  filled.  The  dealers,  when  seeing  the  quan- 
tity of  coins  from  which  they  were  paid  for  their 
goods,  and  the  apparent  freedom  with  which  their 
customer  distributed  it,  became  unusually  attentive 
to  the  purchasers,  all  the  time  deriving  much  amuse- 
ment from  their  conversation  with  them. 

"Is  that  what  you  sell  for  a  wedding  gown  ?  "  said 


THE    MYSTERIOUS    ROOM. 


Ill 


Priscilla  to  a  smiling  clerk,  while  she  began  to  pull 
over  some  pieces  of  gaudy  fabrics  before  him. 

"  Yes,"  replied  the  clerk  with  a  roguish  curl  of  the 
mouth,  "  if  any  one  wants  it ;  but  here  is  the  very 
article  so  very  becoming  to  one  of  your  style  of 
beauty." 


"  Is  that  what  you  sell  for  a  wedding  gown?" 


This  interested  Priscilla,  whose  joy  now  seemed 
beyond  expression.  To  be  called  handsome,  for  she 
understood  it  thus,  and  with  a  sure  prospect  of  mar- 
riage in  the  near  future,  she  needed  nothing  more  to 
perfect  her  happiness.  She  really  seemed  overcome 
with  joy,  and  had  she  been  making  her  purchases 
unattended,  might  have  become  the  victim  of  whole- 
sale imposition  and  the  object  of  ridicule.  I  must 
say,  although  not  to  the  credit  of  clerks,  that  in  those 


112  LEGENDS  OF  OLD  BEDFORD. 

days,  as  well  as  in  these,  when  business  is  very  differ- 
ently conducted,  purchasers  were  often  made  sport  of 
when  innocently  looking  about  for  those  things 
which  they  were  ready  to  procure.  It  mattered  not 
where  they  were  from,  some  peculiarity  was  often 
detected,  and  the  thoughtless  person  behind  the 
counter  revealed  his  ill-manners  in  making  fun,  while 
he  thought  he  was  displaying  his  wit  in  creating  a 
laugh  in  others  as  ungentlemanly  as  himself.  The 
clerk  had  riveted  Priscilla's  attention  by  his  seeming 
flattery,  and  she  continued  her  inquiry  by  saying, 
"  Do  you  think  it  fit  for  me  when  I  am  going  to 
marry  a  minister  ?  " 

On  being  assured  that  it  was  well  adapted  to  the 
purpose,  she  exclaimed  to  Mrs.  Briggs,  who  had  lin- 
gered at  another  counnter,  "I  have  got  it;  just  the 
thing  for  a  minister's  wife,  he  says,"  starting  to  meet 
her  adviser,  while  holding  the  end  of  the  web  of  silk 
with  one  hand  and  grasping  her  bead  bag  by  the 
other. 

Mrs.  Briggs,  however,  persuaded  her  that  another 
shade  would  be  more  desirable,  and  a  more  subdued 
pattern  would  be  quite  as  becoming  for  one  who  was 
to  occupy  the  important  position  of  a  minister's  wife. 
Priscilla,  as  ever,  was  perfectly  willing  to  listen  to 
Mrs.  Briggs,  and  the  selection  was  made  at  another 
counter,  to  the  apparent  displeasure  of  the  clerk  who 
had  interested  himself  so  much  in  the  customer  from 
the  country,  and  who  had  already  begun  to  anticipate 
a  word  of  commendation  from  his  employer  when  he 
should  inform  him  that  he  had  disposed  of  a  shop- 
worn pattern  which  had  been  on  hand  a  long  time. 
A  generous  number  of  yards  were  purchased,  more 
than  Mrs.  Briggs  thought  necessary,  but  as  Priscilla 


THE    MYSTERIOUS    ROOM.  113 

was  anxious  to  have  everything  made  in  the  very 
best  of  style,  a  large  pattern  of  each  kind  selected 
was  decided  upon.  Priscilla  opened  the  bead  bag  and 
paid  the  price  of  the  wedding  gown  with  some  of  the 
identical  money  that  was  taken  from  the  mysterious 
room-.  She  did  not  fail  to  inform  the  attending 
salesmen  in  every  store  which  the  purchasing  party 
entered,  the  occasion  of  this  visit  to  Boston ;  and 
when  any  inquiry  was  made  on  the  part  of  the  clerk, 
the  whole  story  was  told,  and  it  seemed  as  though 
the  whole  town  must  know  of  the  plans  of  Priscilla 
Pendleton  before  the  goods  were  all  selected.  The 
entire  day  was  spent  and  many  stores  were  visited 
before  the  list  was  filled. 

Priscilla  did  not  intend  to  be  outdone  by  any  one 
in  the  way  of  fine  dress  and  trimmings,  and  as  she 
had  been  deprived  for  so  many  years  of  the  real  nec- 
essaries of  life,  now  that  she  had  the  power  and  the 
opportunity,  she  was  the  more  determined  to  go  to 
the  opposite  extreme^  She  was  to  learn  that  fine 
clothes  would  not  make  a  lady ;  and  that  Priscilla 
Pendleton  in  the  finest  and  most  costly  attire  could 
not  appear  as  one.  She  had  had  no  training  in  man- 
ners and  customs  outside  of  the  limited  sphere  in 
which  she  had  always  moved,  and  being  far  behind 
the  ruling  customs  of  her  immediate  neighbors,  she 
was  regarded  an  object  of  pity  by  the  thoughtful 
and  kind-hearted.  She,  with  the  whole  Pendleton 
family,  were  the  occasion  of  many  a  joke  among 
the  thoughtless ;  but  not  so  much  so  since  they  had 
come  into  the  possession  of  wealth.  It  was  noticear 
ble  that  people  who  seldom  spoke  to  Saul,  Sally  and 
Priscilla  before  the  death  of  their  father,  were  now 
very  attentive  and  polite,  and  in  some  instances  made 


114  LEGENDS  OF  OLD  BEDFORD. 

special  exertions  to  take  notice  of  them.  The  one 
whose  friendship  is  aroused  by  selfish  motives  like  this 
is  not  the  true  friend  and  should  never  be  trusted. 

The  weeks  and  months  that  followed  the  trip  to 
Boston  were  busy  ones  at  the  home  of  the  Pendle- 
tons.  The  faithful  mother  kept  the  wheel  going  to 
bring  out  the  good  homespun  linen  for  the  beds. 
She  was  desirous  that  the  first  daughter  who  mar- 
ried "should  have  a  good  setting  out."  Sally  was 
rather  slow  to  lend  a  hand  at  first,  not  having  fully 
recovered  from  her  disappointment ;  but  she  finally 
listened  to  the  advice  of  Mrs.  Briggs  and  took  hold 
in  earnest,  it  having  been  decided  that  she  should 
have  the  same  amount  of  things  prepared  for  her 
future  use  as  Priscilla  was  having  made  for  her 
immediate  demand.  This  plan,  of  course,  required 
twice  the  time,  and  months  passed  before  Priscilla 
was  ready  to  decide  upon  the  day  for  the  marriage. 

During  these  busy  days,  Priscilla  occasionally 
received  a  call  from  Mr.  Jones,  but  it  was  seldom  of 
more  than  an  hour's  duration,  and  often  made  while 
the  family  were  present,  Sally  never  being  known 
to  stop  her  work  for  one  moment.  On  one  occa- 
sion Mr.  Jones  was  persuaded  to  stop  to  tea,  and 
Sally  volunteered  to  prepare  the  meal,  which  seemed 
quite  surprising  to  Priscilla  until  they  were  seated  at 
the  table  and  the  tea  was  poured,  when  catnip  flavor 
was  recognized  by  Priscilla,  who,  in  what  she  in- 
tended for  a  whisper,  said  to  her  sister,  "  It  is  cat- 
nip, Sally." 

The  reply,  "  'Tis  good  enough  for  him,"  easily 
heard  by  all  at  the  table,  was  extremely  mortifying 
to  Priscilla,  but  apparently  unheeded  by  Mr.  Jones. 
Sally  also  manifested  her  displeasure  by  serving  her 


THE    MYSTERIOUS    ROOM.  115 

guest  with  a  skimmed  milk  curd  instead  of  their  best 
quality.  Mr.  Jones  saw  the  situation  and  turned  the 
joke  upon  Sally  by  freely  complimenting  her  for  her 
good  taste  and  remarkable  skill  in  domestic  matters. 

While  Mrs.  Briggs  was  busy  at  her  wheel  one  after- 
noon giving  instructions  to  her  niece  Betsey,  who 
had  reached  her  "teens"  without  this  accomplish- 
ment, she  heard  the  familiar  "  Whoa ! "  of  Mr.  Jones, 
as  he  stopped  his  horse  at  the  end  door.  She  has- 
tened down  to  meet  him  as  she  expected  a  call,  and 
was  not  disappointed.  In  the  course  of  conversa- 
tion Mrs.  Briggs  ventured  to  express  the  same  idea 
to  her  caller  that  she  had  repeatedly  in  her  own  fam- 
ily, but  in  very  careful  language,  for  she  was  not 
wanting  in  that  unswerving  regard  for  the  clergy 
that  prompted  universal  respect,  and  in  many,  a  rever- 
ential awe.  "It  seems  to  me,  Mr.  Jones,  that  you 
hardly  stop  long  enough  with  Miss  Priscilla  to 
become  well  acquainted." 

"Been  acquainted  this  many  a  year,"  was  the 
prompt  reply  of  the  elderly  suitor.  His  arrogant 
spirit  rebelled  against  this  reprimand,  and  he  soon 
found  it  best  to  head  his  white  horse  towards  his 
home. 

An  unexpected  difficulty  now  arose  at  the  Pendle- 
ton home.  Sally,  who  had  been  to  all  appearances 
quite  contented  of  late,  was  not  so  complacent  as 
she  appeared  outwardly,  and  she  had  succeeded  in 
arousing  Saul  to  an  uncomfortable  state  of  mind,  and 
they  seemed  determined  to  do  something  to  get  even 
with  Priscilla.  On  the  evening  of  the  day  that  Mr. 
Jones  called  and  was  admonished  by  Mrs.  Briggs, 
they  started  down  to  call  on  their  faithful  friends 
and  give  vent  to  their  feelings.     The  burden  of  their 


116  LEGENDS  OF  OLD  BEDFORD. 

whole  trouble  was  the  forthcoming  marriage  of  Pris- 
cilla.  Sally  insisted  that,  as  her  sister  was  younger, 
she  had  no  right  to  make  that  change  in  her  relations 
before  she  did.  Saul  had  an  idea  that  Hannah  Nibbs 
had  been  quite  attentive  of  late  when  he  called  to  see 
her  brother  Joseph ;  and  Sally  had  come  to  the  con- 
clusion that  the  only  way  to  keep  up  with  her  sister 
was  to  have  just  such  things  made  as  Priscilla  did, 
and  be  ready  in  case  she  should  have  an  offer.  With 
the  ever-ready  good  and  wise  counsel  of  Mr.  and  Mrs. 
Briggs,  they  returned  to  their  home,  apparently  satis- 
fied, but  not  to  retire  to  rest,  as  we  shall  see  on  an- 
other evening. 

"]S^ed,"  said  grandma,  "you  must  see  that  the  money 
which  these  people  had  so  longed  to  get  into  their  possession 
did  not  bring  happiness,  and  it  seldom  does  when  it  is  unlaw- 
fully obtained  or  falls  into  hands  like  the  Pendletons.  Money 
is  good  when  honestly  obtained  and  kept  for  a  good  use  ;  but 
when  not,  it  is  a  curse.  You  see  that  it  was  the  want  of 
money  that  caused  the  unrest  in  the  Pendleton  family  for 
some  years,  and  now  the  possession  of  it  was  really  the  cause 
of  an  equally  restless  spirit. 


FOURTEENTH  EVEI^ING. 

SAAC  FULLER  learned  no  helpful  lesson  from 
his  disappointment  in  the  raising  of  his  barn, 
5>^  and  soon  made  preparation  for  another  gala  day. 
Hannah  Nibbs  was  not  slow  in  her  work  of  persuad- 
ing the  town  folks  that  the  curse  of  God  rested  on 


THE    MYSTERIOUS    ROOM.  117 

that  enterprise ;  that  the  crow  of  that  eventful  morn- 
ing was  a  most  peculiar  bird  and  had  a  very  unearthly- 
look  when  giving  the  warning  that  ought  to  have 
been  heeded,  and  that  Ike  Fuller  had  not  obtained  so 
much  money  in  so  short  a  time  honestly.  She  also 
urged  that  the  calamity  proved  God's  displeasure  with 
Fuller's  work,  and  that  he  was  visiting  wrath  already 
upon  the  smooth-tongued  fellow.  This  impression 
was  so  general,  that  when  Fuller  announced  that  all 
was  ready  for  another  raising,  but  few  responded,  and 
Fuller's  wrath  was  beyond  expression.  He  deter- 
mined to  give  himself  no  rest  until  he  had  punished 
the  one  whom  he  blamed  for  this ;  but  he  had  mis- 
judged somewhat,  for  Larkin's  shop  had  not  been 
free  from  discussions  on  the  subject.  Hannah  had 
suggested  the  matter  in  the  homes  of  several  of  the 
frequenters  of  this  rainy  day  resort. 

Fuller  had  again  secured  the  confidence  of  Seth 
Pendleton,  with  whom  he  had  been  less  neighborly 
since  his  cash  was  exhausted.  Seth  was  now  a  miser- 
able drunkard.  The  Simpson  farm  was  still  in  his 
possession,  but  fast  running  down,  and  would  have 
been  well  covered  with  mortgage  had  not  his  wife 
refused  to  sign  the  papers.  Coin  from  Fuller's  well- 
filled  purse  served  as  an  effectual  bait,  and  Seth  was 
again  under  the  control  of  Fuller,  but  for  what  reason 
it  was  difficult  to  tell ;  even  Hannah  was  at  a  loss  to 
know  what  motive  to  assign  as  the  occasion  of  the 
renewal  of  the  friendship  between  that  once  friendly 
couple.  It  was  well  known  that  Seth  had  no  ready 
cash  with  which  to  pay  the  bills  that  were  incurred 
by  a  repetition  of  the  old-time  sprees ;  yet  Fuller 
was  artful,  and  took  this  roundabout  way  to  punish 
Hannah.     His  plan   for  accomplishing   this  purpose 


118  LEGENDS  OF  OLD  BEDFORD. 

was  somewhat  complicated,  and  no  one  but  a  studied 
miscliief -maker  would  have  thought  of  such.  To 
arouse  Seth  to  the  point  where  he  would  make  trou- 
ble for  his  brother,  and  thus  frustrate  some  plans  of 
Hannah's,  was  his  determined  purpose. 

Fuller  labored  with  Seth  until  he  convinced  him 
that  Saul  and  his  sisters  were  in  league  against  him ; 
that  they  would  ne^er  be  so  united  unless  they  were 
bent  upon  mischief  and  were  making  some  plan  to 
cheat  him  out  of  his  part  of  the  property  that  yet 
remained  undivided,  and  which  Mr.  Briggs  was  deter- 
mined should  remain  intact  as  long  as  possible.  He 
saw  what  poor  use  Seth  was  making  of  the  share 
already  in  his  possession,  and  felt  that  it  ought  to  be 
kept  for  the  benefit  of  the  faithful  wife,  who  even 
now  had  to  plan  most  carefully  for  the  comfort  of 
the  three  children,  whose  needs  were  poorly  supplied. 
It  was  not  long  before  Seth  was  fully  convinced  that 
he  was  being  wronged,  and  he  hastened  to  see  Mr. 
Briggs,  and  talked  in  a  most  vociferous  manner  about 
the  property,  Saul,  and  his  sisters,  until  Mr.  Briggs 
hardly  knew  how  to  pacify  and  persuade  him  that  all 
was  right  as  he  believed  it  was.  Until  now,  he  had 
been  able  to  quiet  Seth  when  he  became  uneasy  about 
the  delayed  division.  This  was  not  the  first  time  he 
had  complained  to  the  administrator  of  the  estate, 
although  in  a  very  different  manner,  and  Mr.  Briggs 
did  (not  fully  understand  the  cause  of  this  great 
change  in  Seth's  deportment ;  but  he  mistrusted  that 
Fuller  was  at  the  bottom  of  it,  for  he  had  noticed 
that  he  had  kept  away  from  him  for  some  weeks,  and 
he  believed,  what  is  often  true,  that  when  a  person 
suddenly  begins  to  shun  another  whom  he  has  been 
friendly  with,  it  indicates  that  he  has  been  talking 


THE    MYSTERIOUS    ROOM.  119 

maliciously  of  that  one,  or  is  planning  mischief. 
After  the  advice  of  Mr.  Briggs,  Seth  started  for  his 
home,  but  suddenly  determined  to  go  to  the  old 
homestead  on  the  hill,  bent  on  making  trouble  if  pos- 
sible. He  found  all  hands,  except  the  mother,  busy 
in  the  preparations  for  the  marriage ;  even  Saul  had 
become  so  far  interested  as  to  aid  in  the  use  of  the 
great  wheel  that  was  kept  whirling  from  morning  till 
night. 

Said  Seth,  with  his  usual  abruptness,  "  I  know 
what  you  are  about  here,  and  I  am  just  going  to  put 
a  stop  to  it.  I  believe  you  have  been  stealing  from 
me  and  are  doing  it  now.  Ike  Fuller  says  you  are, 
and  we  are  bound  to  spoil  your  fun  and  put  you  out 
of  here.  It's  just  nonsense  for  you  all  three  to  have 
your  living  from  this  farm  just  to  take  care  of  ma'am.^' 

The  expressions  on  the  faces  of  the  trio  were 
enough  to  convince  any  one  that  thev  had  been  guilty* 
of  something  which  Mr.  Briggs  had  not  been  con- 
sulted about.  "  A  guilty  conscience  needs  no  ac- 
cuser." Seth  was  sharp  enough  to  detect  this,  and 
made  such  threats  that  Sally  tremblingly  said  if  they 
would  send  for  Mr.  Briggs  they  would  tell  the  whole. 
This  was  agreed  upon,  and  Saul  started  for  the  one  in 
whom  they  all  had  confidence.  It  was  nearing  mid- 
night; the  quiet  sleep  of  Mr.  and  Mrs.  Briggs  was 
suddenly  disturbed  by  a  rap  at  the  bed-room  window. 

"Who's  there  ?"  shouted  Mr.  Briggs. 

"  'Tis  Saul ;  and  we  want  you  right  up  to  the  house 
at  once  for  there  is  trouble,"  replied  the  harsh  voice 
of  the  angry  Saul. 

Mrs.  Briggs,  supposing  that  sickness  must  have 
driven  him  out  at  this  late  hour,  exclaimed,  "  Is  she 
very  sick  ?     Shall  I  come  too  ?  " 


120  LEGENDS  OF  OLD  BEDFORD. 

''  No  —  no,"  was  the  hoarse  reply,  "  she  is  all  right, 
and  we  don't  want  any  one  but  Mr.  Briggs,  and  don't 
want  any  one  to  know  anything  about  it." 

This  aroused  the  suspicions  of  Mrs.  Briggs,  who 
felt  that  things  were  not  all  right,  and  she  did  all  she 
could  to  prevent  her  husband  from  going,  fearing 
she  should  never  see  him  again. 

"I  don't  know  but  the  Salem  witches  are  coming 
around  in  these  days,"  said  Mrs.  Briggs,  trying  to 
assign  some  cause  for  this  midnight  visit.  However, 
Mr.  Briggs  entertained  no  such  fears,  and  doing  what 
he  could  to  quiet  his  somewhat  alarmed  companion, 
started  out  into  the  darkness  of  the  night  and  went 
off  in  the  direction  of  the  Pendletons  with  a  tall  fig- 
ure, that  to  Mrs.  Briggs,  as  she  saw  it  throu.gh  the 
window,  seemed  twice  the  height  of  Saul. 

The  two  walked  on  in  silence.  Saul  was  too  much 
ashamed  to  speak,  and  as  Mr.  Briggs  did  not  know 
the  nature  of  the  trouble,  he  did  not  feel  at  liberty  to 
speak  from  fear  of  hurting  the  feelings  of  his  mid- 
night companion.  On  entering  the  house,  he  at  once 
saw  by  the  aid  of  the  fire,  and  the  dim,  flickering  can- 
dle, Seth,  Sally  and  Priscilla  sitting  as  silent  as  stat- 
ues. The  silence  was  soon  broken  by  Seth,  who  said, 
'^  What  did  I  tell  you,  Mr.  Briggs  !  They  are  cheat- 
ing me  out  of  my  part,  if  you  don't  know  it ;  they 
have  told  me  as  much;  they  have  done  something, 
and  we  want  you  to  settle  the  matter." 

The  confession  was  made,  and  the  tin  lantern 
was  brought  forth.  It  was  seldom  used  and  had 
been  lighted  but  a  few  times  since  the  eventful  night 
after  the  burial  of  the  father,  and  before  Mr.  Briggs 
took  possession  of  the  property  and  the  mysterious 
room.     The  mice  had  visited  the  candle  since  it  was 


THE    MYSTERIOUS    ROOM. 


121 


last  lighted,  but  this  was  unnoticed  in  the  excitement 
of  the  hour,  and  the  dim  rays  seemed  struggling  to 
shine  out  through  the  irregular  holes  that  were  par- 
tially covered  with  a  coating  of  spider's  webs. 

With  the  lantern  in  one  hand  and  a  shovel  in  the 
other,  Sally  took  the  lead,  followed  closely  by  the 
other  three,  while  Mr.  Briggs  attended  them,  all  the 
time  wondering  what  the  case  could  be.  Out  into 
the  midnight  darkness  they  go,  across  the  road, 
through  a  gateway  into  the  cow  yard,  over  a  wall  to 
the  rear  of  an  old  wood  colored  building  known  as 
the  mill  house  ;  here  they  halt. 

"  There,"  said  Sally,  relapsing  into  silence. 

"  That's  a  hen  coop,"  said  Mr.  Briggs. 

''Take  it  up  and  dig,"  said  Sally,  passing  the 
shovel.  Sally  seemed  to  be  the  only  active  one  in 
the  revelation. 


"  Tako  it  up  and  dig,"  said  Sally. 


122  LEGENDS  OF  OLD  BEDFORD. 

Mr.  Briggs  removed  the  old  frame,  and  by  the  few 
flickering  rays  that  shone  from  the  fast  declining 
candle,  put  in  the  shovel,  which  had  evidently  been 
used  but  little  for  many  years.  The  frost  hindered 
his  progress,  but  after  a  few  persistent  efforts,  he 
struck  something  hard. 

"There,"  said  Sally,  "there  it  is,  I  s'pose." 

"  What  ? "  shouted  Seth,  for  his  first  utterance 
since  the  family  left  the  house. 

"What?"  said  Sally,  repeating  the  question, 
"what  you  have  made  all  of  this  fuss  about." 

Mr.  Briggs  rested  on  his  shovel  while  the  conver- 
sation waxed  earnest  and  hot.  One  not  so  well 
acquainted  with  the  family  would  have  been  alarmed 
as  they  raised  their  voices  and  shook  their  fists  at 
each  other  in  the  frosty  atmosphere  of  that  hour. 

"  I  suppose  you  have  buried  there  what  you  intend- 
ed to  spread  on,  when  you  married  Joe  Nibbs,"  said 
Seth  to  Sally  with  much  emphasis  ;  "  but  I'll  spoil 
your  fun  and  shoAV  up  all  three  of  you,"  he  continued. 

Mr.  Briggs  now  mistrusted  the  whole  affair,  and 
said  in  a  tone  and  air  of  authority,  "  Whatever  there 
is  here  is  for  me,  as  administrator,  to  take  care  of. 
That  I  shall  do,  so  you  may  all  stand  back  while  I 
see  what  kind  of  a  crop  we  are  going  to  harvest  here 
at  midnight." 

He  stooped  down  and  worked  with  his  hands  until 
he  found  the  edge  of  a  board,  which  he  lifted,  just  as 
the  candle  flickered  and  went  out.  Seth,  being  an 
inveterate  smoker,  had  a  plenty  of  tinder  in  his  box 
and  vainly  tried  to  strike  a  spark  into  it  from  his 
flint  and  steel,  but  all  to  no  purpose ;  the  candle  was 
nearly  gone  when  they  lighted  it  for  this  search. 

Mr.  Briggs  worked  away  by  the  light  of  the  stars, 


THE    MYSTERIOUS    ROOM.  123 

not  thinking  it  best  to  venture  to  ask  the  assistance 
of  either  of  the  four  who  stood  by.  At  length  he 
loosened  the  great  earthen  vessel,  from  which  he  had 
removed  the  cover,  but  the  falling  earth  had  so  com- 
pletely hidden  the  contents  that  he  could  not  tell 
what  he  had  found.  He  took  up  the  heavy  burden 
and  gave  command  for  all  to  follow.  No  order  was 
ever  more  readily  obeyed.  Seth  kept  a  close  eye  on 
the  leader.  Upon  entering  the  house,  Mr.  Briggs 
gave  further  orders  to  the  anxious  and  shame-faced 
followers,  so  that  when  he  lighted  a  fresh  candle  they 
sat  in  the  four  corners  of  the  room,  or  as  nearly  so  as 
the  furniture  would  allow,  while  the  earth-covered  re- 
ceptacle which  he  had  brought  in  stood  on  the  table 
in  front  of  the  fireplace. 

Mr.  Briggs  saw  at  a  glance  what  the  nature  of  the 
contents  was,  and  turned  the  jar  upside  down  and  left 
nothing  but  a  heap  of  coin  with  a  mixing  of  earth  on 
the  table.  Looking  at  the  pile  before  him,  and  then 
from  one  to  another  of  the  three  who  had  caused  this 
disturbance,  Mr.  Briggs  remarked,  with  a  good  deal  of 
emphasis,  "1  want  to  know  if  you  have  carried  on 
any  more  such  work  as  this,  and  if  you  have  any 
more  of  your  father's  property  secreted,  for  I  have 
the  law  to  direct  and  uphold  me,  and  I  can  make 
great  trouble  for  you ;  but  if  you  will  confess  all,  I 
will  proceed  to  do  justice  by  each  as  well  as  by  your 
poor  mother,  who  is  sleeping  so  quietly  and  knows  no 
more  of  this  midnight  proceeding  than  I  suppose  she 
■did  of  the  night's  work  when  you  secreted  it." 

"  Mother  ?  "  exclaimed  Seth,  "  she's  got  enough, 
and  I  don't  see  what  she  has  to  do  with  this.  If  she 
has  any  of  it  Saul  and  the  gals  will  git  it  away  from 
her." 


124  LEGENDS  OF  OLD  BEDFORD. 

• 

Mr.  BriggSj  still  maintaining  his  dignity,  glanced 
his  large  gray  eyes  from  one  to  another,  as  he  said, 
"  If  you  are  all "  willing  that  I  should  take  one-third 
of  this  for  your  mother,  I  will  divide  the  remainder 
equally,  and  you  may  each  give  me  good  pay  for  this 
midnight  disturbance." 

"  If  you  will  promise  not  to  tell  about  it  we  will  be 
willing  to  do  as  you  say,"  said  Sally. 

Mr.  Briggs  was  not  to  be  hired,  but  he  was  never 
inclined  to  tell  much  of  his  business,  and  -he  went 
on  with  the  work  of  counting  and  dividing;  being 
more  familiar  with  the  value  of  some  pieces  than 
he  was  when  he  assumed  the  care  of  the  estate  of 
Hezekiah  Pendleton,  he  could  do  this  work  more 
easily  than  at  the  appraisal.  He  first  took  the  share 
which  he  thought  lawfully  belonged  to  the  aged 
mother,  who  was  sleeping  as  soundly  as  an  infant  in 
the  bed-room  near  by.  Seth  took  his  share  and 
started  for  his  home,  declaring  that  he  and  Ike  Ful- 
ler would  come  over  there  and  dig  the  whole  farm 
over,  but  what  he  would  find  more. 

'^I  guess  your  digging  won't  amount  to  much,'^ 
said  Priscilla,  who  held  her  portion  in  her  apron  with 
but  little  idea  of  the  amount  or  value  of  the  bundle, 
while  Sally,  who  held  hers  tied  up  in  a  blue  and 
white  kerchief,  said  to  Seth  in  parting,  "  I  hope  you 
will  make  better  use  of  this  than  you  have  of  some." 
Saul  had  already  made  haste  to  his  room  in  the  back 
part  of  the  house  and  deposited  his  portion. 

When  Mr.  Briggs  reached  home  he  found  his  faith- 
ful wife  and  Betsey  sitting  by  the  fire  waiting  for 
him.  Mrs.  Briggs  commenced  a  series  of  questions, 
hardly  stopping  long  enough  to  get  an  answer  if  one 
had  been   forthcoming.      Unlike   many   people,   Mr. 


THE    MYSTERIOUS    KOOM. 


125 


Dividing  the  Treasures. 


Briggs  had  things  that  he  did  not  tell  to  his  wife, 
and  the  experiences  of  this  night  were  some  of  those 
things  that  he  did  not  see  fit  to  reveal  to. any  one. 
He  drew  a  bundle  from  his  coat  pocket  and  handed 
it  to  his  wife,  saying,  "  Ask  me  no  questions ;  every- 
thing that  seems  so  shrouded  in  mystery  to  you  is 
all  right;  and  some  day  you  may  know  it  all.  Until 
then,  be  contented  and  take  good  care  of  that  pack- 
age. The  worthy  couple  again  retired  to  their  room, 
but  not  to  sleep,  for  Mrs.  Briggs  could  not  be  quieted 
with  her  husband's  explanation. 

Betsey  had  now  become  somewhat  familiar  with 
the  Pendleton  family  and  was  quite  a  favorite  with 
each  of  them.  Her  excellent  taste  had  been  put  to  a 
good  use  in  arranging  the  wedding  garments.  She 
could  not  be  easily  quieted  after  this  night's  experi- 
ence, and  the  early  morning  found  her  on  her  way  to 


126  LEGENDS  OF  OLD  BEDFORD. 

the  Pendleton  home  to  resume  her  duty  as  dress 
maker,  and  possibly  to  get  some  more  light  on  the 
strange  affair  that  was  still  a  mystery  to  her  aunt  and 
herself. 


FIFTEENTH  EVENING. 

^l^jEV.  MR.  JONES  had  made  a  decided  effort 
[^  j^  ^^  secure  the  esteem  of  the  people  of  the 
^^ij|))  town,  since  the  death  of  their  devoted  minis- 
ter, and  from  the  manner  in  which  his  services 
were  received  at  the  raising  of  Fuller's  barn,  thought 
there  was  a  good  prospect  of  being  called  to  the 
vacant  pulpit.  He  was  not,  however,  favored  with 
a  call  to  -the  pastorate,  and  would  not  have  been  if 
he  had  withheld  the  fact  that  Priscilla  Pendleton 
was  to  be  his  wife  and  preside  in  the  next  parsonage 
that  he  should  occupy.  .The  people  of  this  village 
had  been  ministered  to  by  a  most  superior  man,  a 
true  pastor  and  Christian  gentleman,  and  they  could 
not  look  to  an  ordinary  man  as  a  leader,  and  espec- 
ially one  who  so  earnestly  sought  the  pastorate. 

In  the  absence  of  a  pastor  Mr.  Jones  was  invited 
to  officiate  at  the  funeral  of  the  two  young  men  who 
were  killed  at  the  raising  of  Fuller's  barn.  His  ser- 
vices were  unlike  any  that  Mr.  Whitf ord  had  ever 
rendered,  and  the  people  were  more  decided  against 
him  than  before.  Mr.  Jones  took  the  occasion  to 
express,   what  many  were   inclined   to   believe,  that 


THR    MYSTERIOUS    ROOM.  127 

Fuller's  barn  was  doomed  for  good  reasons,  and  this 
did  not  meet  with  a  kind  assent  from  some  of  the 
influential  people,  although  they  entertained  the 
same  idea.  Hannah  Nibbs  said  unhesitatingly  that 
Mr.  Jones  did  it  because  he  was  in  sympathy  with 
the  three  Pendletons,  who  were  not  friendly  with 
their  brother  Seth,  a  particular  friend  of  Fuller's. 
Miss  Nibbs  had  a  reason  for  everything  and  did  not 
fail  to  make  it  known. 

A  promising  young  man,  fresh  from  his  studies, 
came  among  them  and  was  soon  called  to  the  impor- 
tant position.  The  services  of  installation  were  per- 
formed, and  the  whole  village  rejoiced  in  the  kind 
dealings  of  Providence  with  them,  although  they 
never  forgot  the  good  man  who  was  the  shepherd  of 
this  people  for  many  years. 

From  the  time  of  settlement  of  the  new  pastor,  Mr. 
Jones  began  to  grow  indifferent  in  his  relations  with 
the  church,  and  plainly  showed  his  disaffection ;  but 
as  he  was  looking  to  the  time  of  his  marriage,  which 
was  fast  approaching,  his  mind  was  fully  occupied, 
and  he  did  not  manifest  the  extent  of  his  feeling. 
The  plans  for  the  wedding  at  the  Pendleton  home 
were  left  to  Mr.  and  Mrs.  Briggs,  and  they  were 
faithfully  made,  as  was  the  case  with  everything 
they  undertook.  The  outfit  for  Priscilla  was  com- 
pleted under  the  skilful  eye  of  Mrs.  Briggs,  and  faith- 
ful hand  of  her  niece  Betsey,  before  the  opening  of 
the  new  year  ;  and  had  it  not  been  that  Sally  insisted 
upon  having  very  nearly  everything  to  duplicate  her 
sister's,  the  day  for  the  marriage  could  have  been  set 
long  before  it  was.  She,  however,  was  persuaded 
to  defer  the  making  of  her  wedding  dress  until  there 
should  be  an  occasion  for  usina:  it. 


128 


LEGENDS    OF    OLD    BEDFORD. 


There  were  those  who  did  not  credit  the  rumor  that 
the  younger  of  the  Pendleton  girls  was  to  be  mar- 
ried first,  and  the  family  rule  so  disregarded,  until 
Eev.  William  Jones  and  Priscilla  Pendleton  were 
^' cried  in  meetin'." 


"  They  were  orieil  in  nit'elin' 


THE    MYSTERIOUS    ROOM.  129 

The  law  required  an  intention  of  marriage  to  be 
made  public  three  weeks,  at  least,  before  the  event. 
It  was  allowed  to  be  done  by  being  read  by  the 
town  clerk  during  the  service  of  worship,  or  by  a 
notice  posted  on  the  door  of  the  meeting-house,  as 
many  other  official  proclamations  were  made.  They 
chose  the  former  method.  On  retiring  from  the 
meeting-house  when  the  fact  was  first  officially  pro- 
claimed, Miss  Nibbs  was  heard  repeatedly  saying  to 
the  doubters,  "  I  told  you  so ;  I  knew  'twas  true." 

An  early  day  in  February  was  set  for  the  wedding. 
Several  loads  of  furniture  from  Boston  had  been 
selected  by  the  associated  wisdom  and  taste  of  the 
Briggs'  with  Sally,  Priscilla  and  Mr.  Jones ;  the 
entire  funds  coming  from  Priscilla's  well-filled  purse. 

A  wedding  was  a  novel  thing  at  the  Pendleton 
home.  No  event  of  the  kind  had  been  witnessed 
there  by  the  younger  generation,  excepting  that  of 
Uncle  James  and  Aunt  Molly,  who,  after  a  moderate 
courtship  of  twenty  years,  were  married  with  but 
little  ceremony.  Priscilla's  wedding  was  greatly  an- 
ticipated by  the  family,  even  by  Sally. 

The  day  of  the  marriage  was  one  of  those  in  Feb- 
ruary when  the  weather  begins  to  suggest  the 
approach  of  spring ;  when  the  thawing  of  the  early 
part  of  the  day,  and  the  freezing  of  later  hours,  ren- 
der the  travelling  uncomfortable ;  when  the  farmer 
who  has  started  'out  from  his  home  in  a  sleigh 
wishes  he  was  on  wheels,  and  the  one  who  has  started 
out  on  wheels  regrets  that  he  is  not  oh  runners.  The 
floors  at  the  Pendleton  home  were  scoured  with  extra 
care,  as  the  Pendleton  girls  were  well  versed  in  that 
accomplishment,  although  Hannah  had  endeavored  to 
give   people   a   different    impression.     The   floor    of 


130  LEGENDS  OF  OLD  BEDFORD. 

the  best  room  was  sanded  in  the  most  grotesque 
figures.  Every  part  of  the  old  house  was  put  in 
"apple-pie  ord^er,"  said  Mother  Pendleton.  Few 
were  invited  besides  the  family.  Seth  was  so  embit- 
tered that  he  did  not  appear  or  any  of  his  household. 
The  relatives  of  the  groom  were  very  few  and  lived 
at  a  distance,  hence  his  family  was  not  represented. 
Mr.  and  Mrs.  Briggs  were  selected  to  stand  up  with 
the  couple,  although  seniors  of  the  bride  and  groom ; 
yet  this  favor  they  did  not  decline,  while  seeing  the 
inappropriateness  of  the  selection.  Courtesy  would 
admit  of  no  other  way  than  for  the  new  minister  to 
be  invited  to  perform  the  ceremony,  unpleasant 
though  it  was  to  Mr.  Jones. 

Early  in  the  evening  the  little  company  assem- 
bled, Mother  Pendleton  in  a  suitable  garb  of  black, 
with  a  fresh  cap  and  kerchief  of  white  crape  to 
match,  arranged  by  her  young  friend,  whose  excel- 
lent taste  was  fully  apparent.  Saul  was  put  into 
a  "  bran  new  suit  of  store  clothes "  as  he  termed 
them,  being  the  first  that  he  ever  had  which  were 
not  cut  and  made  by  his  mother  and  sisters.  The 
broad  ruffles  of  his  shirt  front,  nicely  crimped,  con- 
trasted strangely  with  the  stubborn  bristles  of  red- 
dish yellow  that  encircled  his  face,  while  those  that 
fell  over  his  large,  brown  hands,  contributed  to  his 
awkward  appearance.  A  pair  of  boots  of  Larkin's 
best  workmanship  encased  his  feet.  They  were  fully 
three  inches  longer  than  were  needed  and  narrowed 
towards  the  toe,  with  an  upward  tendency.  They 
looked  and  felt  strange  to  Saul,  for  nothing  but  bro- 
gans  of  genuine  cowhide  had  been  furnished  for  him 
until  this  time.  In  this  costume  he  took  a  position 
in  a  corner,  and  with  an  expression  of  perfect  satis- 


THE    MYSTERIOUS    ROOM.  :131 

faction,  maintained  it  till  the  ceremony  was  over. 
Sally  was  attired  exactly  like  Priscilla,  with  the 
exception  of  the  gown ;  and  she  did  not  fail  to  make 
it  known  that  it  would  take  her  but  little  time  to 
get  ready  for  her  marriage  when  the  opportunity 
presented  itself.  Mr.  and  Mrs.  Briggs  were  neatly 
attired  and  early  at  the  scene,  and  Betsey  accompa- 
nied them.  Through  her  winning  manners  she  had 
early  won  her  way  to  the  affections  of  each  member 
of  the  Pendleton  family,  and  although  unconscious  of 
it,  she  had  brought  more  cheer  to  those  clouded  lives 
than  all  the  coin  of  the  mysterious  room.  The  youth- 
ful minister,  with  his  pretty  wife,  added  character  to 
the  occasion.  All  the  guests  were  ready  ;  the  fire  in 
the  broad  open  fireplace  never  sparkled  more  bright- 
ly ;  the  old  brass  andirons  never  shone  more  bril- 
liantly ;  no  refreshment  table  ever  looked  more 
tempting  in  that  house  than  the  one  now  spread  in 
the  living  room,  dark  and  unattractive  though  it 
was;  but  the  best  table  cloth  was  of  immaculate 
whiteness,  and  the  set  of  blue  ware  made  a  pleasing 
contrast. 

The  bride  was  made  ready  long  before  the  groom 
made  his  appearance,  and  the  little  company  could  do 
no  less  than  pass  the  time  in  admiring  her  attire. 
The  excellent  taste  of  Mrs.  Briggs  and  her  niece  had 
never  been  fully  gratified  before,  for  in  no  instance 
had  either  felt  at  liberty  to  expend  all  the  money 
that  she  felt  was  needed  to  complete  the  costume  of 
any  one.  When  Mrs.  Briggs  prepared  her  own  out- 
fit, she  was  obliged  to  consider  the  uncertain  state  of 
her  father's  finance  and  could  not  be  lavish;  but 
here  she  had  full  direction  and  a  well-filled  purse  to 
be  used  without  stint,  and  the  Priscilla  Pendleton  of 


132  LEGENDS  OF  OLD  BEDFORD. 

ordinary  occasions  was  not  to  be  compared  with  the 
Priscilla  of  the  present  hour ;  but  one  only  needed  to 
open  conversation  with  her  to  see  at  once  that  she 
had  none  of  the  mental  furnishing  that  ought  to  be 
found  as  adornments  of  one  who  was  to  occupy  the 
position  that  she  expected  to  fill.  A  beautiful  silk 
of  changeable  hue,  draped  with  a  rich  mantle  of 
white  silk  lace,  gave  a  graceful  bearing  to  the  tall 
figure.  Her  hair  was  arranged  on  cushions  so  as  to 
stand  very  high.  It  required  much  time  to  dress  it 
and  was  necessarily  done  the  day  before  by  Betsey. 
Priscilla  was  obliged  to  take  her  night's  rest  in  a  sit- 
ting position.  The  short  cut  sleeves  of  the  dress 
gave  opportunity  for  the  display  of  armlets  that  cor- 
responded with  the  drapery.  Priscilla  being  very 
tall,  Mrs.  Briggs  had  advised  her  to  wear  slippers  of 
a  lower  heel  than  was  the  custom.  None  but  the 
extreme  of  fashion  would  fully  satisfy,  and  such  were 
purchased.  Her  height  was  more  than  that  of  the 
average  woman,  and  was  extended  not  only  by  the 
fashionable  dress  of  the  hair,  but  fully  two  inches 
were  added  by  the  dress  of  the  feet,  which  was  of 
the  finest  white  kid.  The  embroidered  stockings,  of 
cream-tinted  silk,  showed  off  to  a  good  advantage,  as 
the  fashion  required  the  dress  to  be  cut  short.  Pris- 
cilla was  attentive  to  every  detail  of  fashion,  as  the 
more  uncultivated  usually  are. 

"  I'm  afraid  he  is  going  to  sarve  us  a  trick,"  anx- 
iously whispered  Mother  Pendleton,  after  a  full  half- 
hour's  delay. 

"  Oh,  no ;  I  think  not,"  said  Mr.  Lawrence  with  a 
soothing  expression.  "Slow  and  sure,  madam,  is 
doubtless  the  motto  of  Mr.  Jones." 

Presently  he  was  announced  as  rising  the  hill.     The 


THE    MYSTEIilO U8    ROOM. 


133 


Marriage  of  Priscilla. 


old  white  horse  came  jogging  along,  while  the  sleigh 
runners  creaked  and  groaned  as  they  vainly  sought 
for  snow  or  ice  of  any  thickness  on  that  southern 
slope  of  the  Pendleton  hill.  Mrs.  Briggs  made  it 
convenient  to  meet  Mr.  Jones  at  the  outer  door,  and 
took  the  first  opportunity  to  reprimand  him  for  being 
tardy. 

"  Why,  Mr.  Jones,  what  is  the  trouble  ?  We  have 
been  waiting  a  long  time  for  you.  It  is  now  an  hour 
past  the  time  appointed  for  the  ceremony.  Where 
have  you  been  ? "  were  the  words  of  the  family 
friend. 

"  Why,  madam,  it  has  been  quite  a  cold  day,  and  I 
had  to  stop  to  gather  my  eggs  before  I  started,  fear- 
ing they  would  freeze,  and  this  delayed  me  somewhat. 
The  hens  were  rather  dilatory  to-day,  and  I  came  one 
short  of  the  usual  number  after  all." 

This  was  the  explanation  given  by  Mr.  Jones  with 


134 


LEGENDS    OF    OLD    BEDFORD. 


a  good  deal  of  complacency  and  ministerial  dignity. 
The  ceremony  was  soon  performed,  the  feast  was 
enjoyed  by  most  of  the  company.  It  was  a  little 
doubtful  if  Saul  fully  appreciated  it,  as  his  ruffles 
were  of  great  annoyance  to  him,  and  the  tightness  of 
''store  clothes"  made  sitting  quite  uncomfortable. 
As  Mr.  Jones  was  storing  away  the  last  band-boxes 
and  carpet  bags  in  the  bottom  of  his  spacious  sleigh, 
that  had  been  driven  up  to  the  door,  Mrs.  Briggs  ven- 
tured to  say,  "  I  hope  you  have  left  some  one  at  home, 
so  that  Mrs.  Jones  will  meet  with  a  cheerful  recep- 
tion after  the  ride." 

"  I  left  the  house  alone ;  but  it  won't  take  long  to 
blow  up  the  coals  and  get  a  good  fire,"  was  the  reply 
of  the  groom. 

At  length  Priscilla  was  seated  with  a  freshly 
stocked  foot  stove  to  keep  her  comfortable,  and  the 
old  white  horse  was  off  with  E-ev.  William  Jones  and 
his  wife  Priscilla. 


SIXTEENTH  EVENING. 

ffili^AELY  on  the  morning  following  the  wedding, 
^^  Hannah  started  on  a  round  of  visits  and  a 
m§l  tour  of  news  gathering.  She  had  thought 
that  Saul's  intimacy  with  her  brother  Joseph  might 
be  the  means  of  her  being  invited  to  the  wedding  of 
Ms  sister.  She  also  had  some  faint  hope  that  Saul 
had  a  double   interest   in   calling   so  very  often   at 


THE    MYSTERIOUS    ROOM.  135 

their  house;  but  now  that  Priscilla  was  married  and 
gone,  and  she  not  invited  as  guest  or  servant,  there 
seemed  to  be  a  new  occasion  for  unrest  on  her  part. 

Hannah  was  one  of  those  people  who  enjoyed 
being  sent  for  on  every  occasion,  whether  of  sadness 
or  rejoicing  ;  and  wherever  work  was  to  be  done  she 
could  make  herself  useful.  She  seldom  refused,  and 
then  derived  pleasure  from  complaining  o^  her  bur- 
dens. Her  mother  was  at  fault  in  this  particular. 
She  put  her  daughter  forward,  oifering  her  services, 
and  then  continually  complained  because  "  My  Han- 
nah is  always  sent  for  and  gets  no  time  for  rest." 
Hannah  was  not  called  to  aid  at  the  Pendleton  wed- 
ding, and  she  manifested  her  disappointment  by 
blaming  one  and  another  for  what  did  not  meet  with 
her  approval. 

She  first  dropped  in  to  have  a  word  with  Mrs. 
Briggs,  whom  she  found  very  busy  in  the  work  of 
the  dairy.  "  Well,  Mrs.  Briggs,  is  it  possible  that 
you  can  bring  your  mind  down  to  such  work  on  the 
morning  following  the  great  wedding  ? "  said  Han- 
nah. 

"Why,  Miss  Nibbs,  the  wedding  was  not  great;  on 
the  contrary  quite  small,  and  I  did  not  allow  my 
mind  to  be  disturbed,  and  I  saw  nothing  to  excite 
any  one,"  replied  Mrs.  Briggs,  while  she  continued 
moulding  the  lumps  of  winter  butter.  "Priscilla 
looked  very  pretty.  She  has  a  fine  outfit  and  has 
furnished  her  house  very  neatly,  and  I  hope  she  will 
be  happy  with  Mr.  Jones,"  continued  she. 

"Mr.  Jones,"  said  Hannah  sneeringly,  "he  must 
have  a  taste  to  be  happy  with  such  an  ignorant 
person." 

"  They  are  married,"  said  Mrs.  Briggs,  "  and  it  is 


136  LEGENDS  OF  OLD  BEDFORD. 

useless  for  us  to  trouble  ourselves  about  the  future  in 
their  case." 

'^  I  hear  Seth  didn't  go  to  the  wedding,"  continued 
Hannah. 

"No,"  replied  Mrs.  Briggs,  "Seth  is  not  making 
the  best  use  of  his  time  and  money;  and  there's 
Patty,  poor  woman,  I  believe  she  has  a  very  hard 
time,  so  different  from  what  the  prospect  was  when 
she  married  Seth." 

"  I  never  saw  any  prospect  worth  speaking  of  my- 
self," said  Hannah,  "  and  I  should  think  those  folks 
who  helped  on  that  match  would  feel  ashamed.  I 
hope  the  last  match  will  be  more  gratifying." 

The  entrance  of  Mr.  Briggs  brought  the  conversa- 
tion to  a  close,  and  Hannah  hastened  on  to  spend  a 
while  with  Hepsy  Page.  There  the  burden  of  her 
conversation  was  the  same  as  at  the  Briggs  home, 
and  when  she  had  completed  the  trip  and  reached 
home,  she  had  accomplished  but  little  more  than  she 
did  during  her  first  call. 

The  Sabbath  following  the  wedding  was  anticipated 
by  Hannah,  and  others  as  well,  for  they  felt  sure  of 
seeing  Priscilla  in  her  new  garb.  She  was  not  the 
only  one  who  was  looking  forward  to  the  Sabbath 
when  the  newly  married  couple  were  expected  to 
"come  out  bride."  There  were  several  people  in 
the  church  who  were  not  very  constant ;  some  unus- 
ual occasion,  like  the  first  appearance  of  a  newly 
married  couple,  generally  moved  them  to  lay  aside 
their  rheumatism  for  a  few  hours.  Many  regular 
attendants  were  in  their  accustomed  placets  before 
the  usual  time.  Hannah  was  among  them,  and  her 
head  was  plainly  seen  turning  continually  about, 
expecting  each  new  arrival  would  be  Mr.  and   Mrs. 


THE    MYSTERIOUS    ROOM.  137 

Jones.  James  Wrong  struck  up  his  little  fiddle,  and 
the  big  one  soon  followed  with  its  bass  notes,  but  no 
bridal  couple  appeared.  Invocation,  song,  prayer 
short  and  long,  and  sermon,  followed  each  other  in 
the  regular  order,  and  nothing  was  seen  of  Mr.  Jones 
and  Priscilla. 

After  service  the  congregation  scattered,  save  such 
as,  living  at  a  distance,  brought  their  lunch  and 
remained  until  the  second  service.  Hannah  was  one 
of  them  and  wasted  none  of  the  time  that  intervened 
between  the  services.  She  had  an  interest  in  the 
prosperity  of  the  church,  and  now  that  the  new  pas- 
tor was  settled  and  it  was  certain  that  Mr.  Jones  was 
not  to  be  their  leader,  she  renewed  her  energy  and 
spent  a  portion  of  the  nooning  in  cleaning  about  the 
pews,  "hoeing  out"  she  called  it.  While  making  good 
use  of  the  broom,  she  was  heard  to  say  to  Mrs.  John- 
son, "  Where  do  you  suppose  the  bride  is  to-day  ?  " 

"  I  had  thought  of  that  myself,"  replied  Mrs.  John- 
son, raising  her  head  from  a  volume  of  Dr.  Watts. 
"I  hope  Mr.  Jones  is  not  oifended  because  we  have 
not  called  him  to  preach  for  us  regularly,"  she  con- 
tinued. 

"  I  hope  not,"  said  Hannah,  "  but  wouldn't  he  have 
showed  it  before  if  he  had  any  such  feelings  ?  " 

Here  the  approach  of  the  bell-man  brought  the 
chat  and  the  cleaning  to  a  close.  Soon  the  worship- 
pers gathered  for  the  second  service,  but  the  expected 
couple  failed  to  appear.  Mrs.  Briggs  felt  it  her  duty 
to  drive  around  by  the  home  of  the  newly  wedded 
couple  after  the  service  to  see  if  any  one  was  ill. 
She  thought  that  it  might  be  the  eggs  that  kept 
Mr.  Jones,  and  of  course  Priscilla  wouldn't  go  alone 
on  the  first  Sabbath. 


138  LEGENDS  OF  OLD  BEDFORD. 

"Expected  to  see  you  at  meeting,"  said  Mrs.  Briggs 
as  soon  as  Mr.  Jones  appeared  at  the  door,  "hope  you 
are  all  well  here." 

"Oh,  yes,  all  well,  very  well,"  replied  Mr.  Jones 
with  a  downcast  expression  of  countenance.  "  I  have 
concluded  that  as  I  am  not  good  enough  to  preach  for 
you  I  am  not  good  enough  to  worship  with  you.  I 
have  a  good  congregation  at  home  and  I  can  hold  ser- 
vices here,  which  I,  intend  to  do." 

This  he  did,  and  Priscilla,  who  had  expected  to 
appear  in  church  on  the  first  Sabbath  morning,  as 
much  as  the  folks  had  anticipated  seeing  her,  was 
obliged  to  remain  at  home  and  sit,  the  only  listener, 
through  a  long  service,  while  her  husband  preached, 
prayed  and  sang  in  a  most  vigorous  manner.  Mr. 
Jones  had  not  felt  kindly  towards  the  townspeople 
for  some  months,  yet  had  not  absented  himself  very 
often  from  church  service ;  but  now  that  he  was  mar- 
ried he  began  to  show  his  indignation  by  staying  at 
home  and  keeping  his  wife  as  well.  Priscilla  wanted 
to  go  very  much,  as  was  her  custom,  but  thought  it 
to  be  her  duty  to  obey  her  husband,  and  never 
thought  she  had  any  right  to  express  her  prefer- 
ence, for  she  had  always  seen  her  mother  do  just  as 
her  father  said.  Mr.  Jones  adhered  to  this  plan  a 
long  time,  and  Priscilla  continued  to  be  submissive  as 
on  the  first  Sabbath.  She  did  not  have  an  opportu- 
nity to  display  her  fine  outfit  until  the  people  had 
given  up  thinking  of  her  as  a  bride.  Being  so  utterly 
incapable  of  caring  for  her  property,  she  gradually 
gave  it  into  the  keeping  of  her  husband;  while  the 
cash  that  remained  after  the  outfit  was  completed 
had  gone  immediately  into  his  control. 


THE    MYSTKJMOUS    ROOM. 


139 


Preaching  at  Home. 


That  Sally  was  ready  and  anxious  for  an  offer  was 
generally  known,  and  there  were  many  speculations 
in  Larkin's  shop  about  the  future  of  the  two  Pendle- 
tons  who  remained  on  the  hill.  Thomas  Stark,  a 
widower  with  a  large  family  of  full  grown  children, 
thought  this  a  favorable  opportunity  for  him,  and 
with  but  little  preliminary  work  called  on  Sally  and 
at  once  made  known  his  errand.  He  was  not  a  mile 
a,way  from  the  Pendletons  before  Sally  was  at  the 
Briggs  house  seeking  the  advice  of  her  faithful 
friends. 

"Now,  if  I  thought  it  was  my  money  that  he 
wanted,  I  would  refuse  at  once." 

"  Do  you  suppose  it  is  love  that  prompts  him  to 
<3all  and  make  this  proposition  to  you  ?  "  asked  Mrs. 
Briggs. 

"He  says  it  is,"  renlied  Sally;  but  how  can  I 
know  for  certain  ?  " 


140  LEGENDS  of'  OLD  BEDFORD. 

'^  There  is  no  way  that  I  know  of  onlj^  to  try  him. 
Wait  and  see  if  he  remains  attentive,"  said  Mr. 
Briggs  ;  "1  wouldn't  give  him  an  immediate  answer.'' 

Sally  received  this  advice  with  apparent  regret, 
and  went  away  with  a  disheartened  spirit,  for  she 
was  anxious  to  have  the  question  settled  at  once. 
She  could  not  bring  her  mind  to  the  quiet  routine  of 
duties  at  home  after  the  months  of  exciting  prepara- 
tion had  passed  since  Priscilla  gave  the  favorable 
reply  to  Mr.  Jones.  She  did  so  wish  that  her  friends 
had  been  moved  to  give  her  different  advice ;  but  it 
was  such  as  their  judgment  prompted.  They  were 
feeling  somewhat  disappointed  over  the  manner  in 
which  Mr.  Jones  was  treating  Priscilla.  They  had 
never  indulged  a  thought  that  her  prospects  were  not 
uncommonly  promising.  Mr.  Jones  was  a  clergyman, 
had  been  a  pastor  of  a  large  people,  but  having  come 
to  town  from  another  state,  they  did  not  know  any- 
thing of  his  success  as  a  pastor,  although  he  had 
spent  some  months  in  the  neighborhood  in  his  earlier 
years,  before  he  had  completed  his  studies. 
.  Mr.  Stark  repeated  his  calls  upon  Sally  and  pressed 
the  suit  very  urgently.  On  the  morning  following- 
one  of  his  calls,  Sally  hastened  down  to  Mr.  Briggs,. 
carrying  an  orange  and  a  package  of  confectionery 
which  her  suitor  had  left  as  tokens  of  his  regard. 
On  displaying  the  unmistakable  evidences  of  love^ 
as  she  thought  them,  she  said,  "There,  do  you  sup- 
pose Mr.  Stark  would  give  them  to  me  if  he  didn't 
love  me  ?  " 

It  was  a  difficult  question  for  them  to  answer 
and  please  her  and  have  due  regard  for  their  own 
impressions,  so  they  made  no  reply  at  all  to  the  one 
question,  but  started  a  different  subject  for  conversa- 


THE    MYSTERIOUS    ROOM.  141 

tion  in  which  Sally  saw  nothing  interesting.  She 
soon  gathered  up  her  presents  and  went  back  to  her 
home  in  a  disappointed  and  unsettled  state  of  mind. 
Mr.  Stark  was  urgent ;  it  was  her  first  offer  3  Pris- 
cilla  had  married  first  after  all  the  plans  to  the 
contrary;  she  woxild  like  to  follow  soon,  but  to  go 
contrary  to  the  advice  of  those  ever  faithful  friends 
did  seem  hazardous  to  her.  She  yielded  at  length  to 
the  persuasions  of  the  artful  suitor  and  the  day  was 
set.  But  little  time  was  required  for  the  last  prepar- 
ations, and  in  May  following  the  marriage  of  Priscilla 
Sally  went  with  Thomas  Stark  to  the  Justice  of  the 
Peace,  arid  the  ceremony  was  performed,  and  they 
began  housekeeping  in  the  village. 

The  property  was  not  fully  settled,  and  it  now 
became  necessary  for  Mr.  Briggs  to  give  directions 
about  the  household  affairs,  and  some  one  to  assist 
Mother  Pendleton  was  sought  for.  Hannah  did  say 
that  if  she  could  leave  her  mother  she  would  go,  but 
she  was  not  called  upon,  and  for  a  time  Saul  and  his 
mother  managed  affairs  alone.  As  Sally  and  Pris- 
cilla had  gone  from  the  home,  the  plans  made  soon 
after  their  father's  death  for  the  care 'of  their  mother 
had  come  to  an  end,  and  it  seemed  necessary  that  a 
final  division  and  settlement  should  be  made.  This 
was  done  at  once.  Seth  was  given  a  new  start.  Sally 
bought  a  fine  farm,  and  with  her  husband,  Thomas 
Stark,  settled  in  a  most  promising  manner.  She 
also  had  twenty  acres  of  the  best  of  the  woodland 
tliat  was  near  her  old  home,  wisely  preferring  to  have 
some  of  the  farm  rather  than  so  much  money.  Pris- 
cilla, unwisely  enough,  gave  all  her  portion  over  to 
her  husband  as  she  had  perfect  confidence  in  him. 
Being  a  clergyman,  she  would  not  have   thought  it 


142  LEGENDS  OF  OLD  BEDFORD. 

right  to  doubt  his  wisdom  any  more  than  she  did  the 
plans  of  her  Heavenly  Father.  Saul  kept  his  por- 
tion, as  he  said  he  intended  to  do,  ''  Until  I  have  a 
good  chance  to  invest."  He  had  learned  a  few  of  the 
terms  and  expressions  rather  imperfectly  from  Ful- 
ler, who,  it  was  plain  to  be  seen,  was  trying  to  get 
the  best  of  him  as  he  had  of  Seth. 

While  Saul  and  his  mother  were  managing  affairs 
at  the  old  home  without  aid  from  any  one,  the  day 
came  for  providing  homes  for  the  people  who  were 
supported  by  the  town.  Ike  Puller  was  at  the  sale, 
and  being  the  lowest  bidder,  Suky  Giles  was  set  down 
to  him  for  the  next  year  at  three  and  ninepence  per 
week,  "  being  a  good  strong  woman  and  capable  of 
doing  a  good  deal  of  work."  Ike  convinced  Saul 
that  she  was  just  the  one  for  him  to  have  to  help 
about  the  house  and  do  the  milking,  so  they  made 
a  bargain  and  Saul  took  Suky  Giles  for  what  she 
could  do,  and  Fuller  was  to  get  the  pay  from  the 
town.  While  the  woman  was  in  good  health  this 
plan  was  not  objected  to  by  any  one,  but  in  a  few 
months  she  was  taken  ill  and  Fuller  was  compelled 
by  the  selectmen  to  take  her  to  his  home. 

Here  Ned,  very  naturally,  began  to  inquire  about  the  cus- 
tom, and  grandma  was  obliged  to  explain,  "  In  the  earlier 
days,"  said  she,  "towns  did  not  have  almshouses  as  later, 
but  once  a  year  the  people  gathered  and  said  how  little  they 
would  keep  a  certain  one  for  during  the  year,  and  generally  the 
lowest  price  was  accepted.  The  later  plans  for  caring  for  the 
poor  are  very  much  better,  as  are  many  of  the  modern  ways. 
In  those  days  old  and  feeble  folks  were  sometimes  neglected 
and  not  infrequently  abused.  In  these  later  times,  it  seems  to 
me  that  the  Christian  religion  has  taken  more  practical  forms, 
for  no  one  can  be  long  allowed  to  suffer  from  neglect  or  abuse 
without  the  interference  of  some  of  the  representatives  of  the 
humane  societies  that  are  so  numerous." 


THE    MYSTERIOUS    ROOM. 


143 


A  Neighbor's  Home. 


SEVENTEENTH   EVENING. 


;HE  Pendleton  property  was  fully  settled.  No 
one  knew  what  the  amount  of  the  estate  was, 
outside  the  family,  with  the  exception  of  Mr. 
Briggs,  not  even  his  wife.  Saul  had  an  extra  portion 
with  the  agreement  "to  see  his  mother  through.^' 
For  a  while  things  worked  very  well,  until  at  length 
Saul  brought  a  housekeeper  from  the  neighboring 
town  who  managed  to  get  the  control  of  not  only 
Saul  but  his  mother,  and  they  both  had  implicit  con- 
fidence in  Silence  Baker.  She  took  the  part  of  a 
suitor  and  soon  met  with  a  conquest.  Saul  was 
brought  under  her  control  completely,  and  Mother 
Pendleton  was  set  one  side  as  a  kind  of  machine  to 
eat  and  drink  what  was  set  before  her  and  ask  no 
questions.  As  the  property  was  fully  settled  and 
out  of  the  administrator's  hands,  Mr.  Briggs  had  no 
legal  right  to  say  anything  about  matters  on  the  hill, 
and  the  new  mistress  of  the  house  didn't  propose  to 


144  LEGENDS  OF  OLD  BEDFORD. 

have  him  interfere,  and  even  Saul  was  not  allowed  to 
go  for  advice  on  any  subject,  save  one  occasion  when 
his  favorite  cow  was  choked  with  an  apple ;  but  the 
noble  heart  of  Mr.  Briggs  prompted  him  to  respond 
with  as  kindly  feeling  as  had  actuated  him  on  any  of 
the  numerous  calls  from  that  family.  With  the  aid 
of  Saul  he  saved  the  life  of  the  cow,  but  Silence  very 
ungratefully  showed  that  she  had  no  further  use  for 
their  kind  neighbor  after  the  life  of  the  cow  was  as- 
sured. 

.  Silence  Baker  could  not  have  been  more  inappro- 
priately named,  for  she  was  never  silent  when  there 
was  any  one  near  by  to  scold.  A  few  years  had 
brought  a  great  change  in  this  old  home.  For  a  long 
time  the  Briggs'  had  been  welcome  at  all  hours  and 
been  sought  for  on  all  occasions ;  now  they  were  the 
last  resort,  and  Saul  scarcely  dared  to  drop  in  for  a 
moment  when  on  his  way  to  the  village.  He  was  as 
much  an  underling  as  when  the  father  ruled  the  home 
and  all  who  were  in  it ;  but  he  received  little  or  no 
sympathy,  as  he  had  brought  this  trouble  upon  him- 
self. In  all  other  matters  of  difficulty  he  had 
resorted  to  Mr.  and  Mrs.  Briggs  for  comfort,  but  now 
he  must  endure  it  alone,  and  he  was  poorly  prepared 
for  such  a  mental  burden. 

Silence  began  to  express  a  desire  for  a  new  house, 
and  it  was  not  an  unreasonable  request.  The  old 
dwelling  was  very  much  dilapidated;  but  Saul  was 
attached  to  it  as  it  had  sheltered  him  all  his  days, 
and  there  were  pleasant  associations  connected  with 
it  when  viewed  from  his  present  standpoint.  The 
darkest  days  of  his  early  life  looked  pleasant  to  him 
now.  He  did  not  assent  to  the  proposition  of  his  wife, 
and  this  gave  rise  to  a  decided  quarrel.     Mother  Pen- 


THE    MYSTERIOUS    ROOM.  145 

dleton  meekly  took  her  food,  ate  it  and  said  nothing, 
bnt  longed  for  the  visits  of  Mr.  and  Mrs.  Briggs  as 
of  old,  and  even  did  venture  to  send  for  them  by 
Hannah,  who  dared  to  call  upon  the  aged  lady  "  out 
of  sympathy ;  "  but  Silence,  who  was  as  good  as  her 
name  only  until  Hannah  departed,  so  opened  her  bat- 
tery of  words  upon  the  good  woman,  that  she  never 
sent  for  them  again.  When  they  came  in  response 
to  the  request  of  their  old  neighbor.  Silence  kept 
within  hearing  so  that  the  good  woman  had  no  oppor- 
tunity to  tell  her  grievances  to  them  or  ask  advice  as 
she  always  had  done  and  still  longed  to  do ;  and  truly 
she  never  needed  it  more.  Her  hearing  was  not 
impaired  in  the  least,  but  she  had  a  trouble  in  her 
limbs  that  prevented  her  from  walking  but  little ;  so 
she  was  obliged  to  remain  at  home  and  hear  the 
scolding  of  Silence ;  and  when  any  one  came  she  was 
not  allowed  to  be  alone  with  them  long  enough  to 
tell  her  troubles.  An  occasional  visit  from  the  light- 
hearted  Betsey  was  as  a  sunbeam  to  her  lonely  room, 
and  not  infrequently  the  gentle  hands  of  the  young 
friend  deposited  on  her  table  a  bunch  of  old-fash- 
ioned posies,  that  served  to  carry  back  the  thoughts 
of  the  aged  woman  to  the  days  of  her  youth. 

Saul  was  obliged  to  give  way  to  the  persuasions 
and  threats  of  his  wife,  and  begin  to  plan  for  the  new 
house.  Silence  considered  Fuller's  advice  very  much 
better  than  any  that  her  husband  could  give.  The 
house  was  to  stand  on  the  opposite  side  of  the  high- 
way from  the  ancestral  dwelling.  It  was  built  large- 
ly of  lumber  prepared  from  the  trees  of  the  old  fai'm, 
and  was  months  in  process  of  erection.  Saul,  being 
entirely  ignorant  of  the  expense  of  building  or  of 
making  bargains,  was  imposed  upon  at  every  hand. 


146  LEGENDS    OF    OLD    JiKDKOKl). 

Ike  Fuller  had  secured  his  confidence,  and  now  re- 
joiced in  the  fact  that  he  had  the  place  of  Mr.  Briggs 
as  an  adviser.  It  seemed  strange,  but  it  was  true,  that 
Fuller  so  got  the  control  of  Saul  that  he  believed 
that  Mr.  Briggs  had  been  imposing  upon  him; 
"feathering  his  nest,"  as  Fuller  called  it,  and  Saul 
now  felt  relieved  that  he  had  secured  for  an  adviser, 
one  so  capable,  so  kind  and  willing.  He  could  not 
see  how  his  brother  Seth  had  been  brought  to  ruin, 
and  this  blindness  was  due  to  his  early  lack  of  train- 
ing. Fuller  took  the  entire  direction  of  building  the 
house,  and  persuaded  Saul,  with  the  help  of  Silence, 
to  erect  a  barn  at  the  same  time.  Fuller  provided 
the  cash  when  any  was  needed  for  paying  the  bills, 
only  asking  Saul  and  Silence  to  put  their  names  on 
a  paper.  So  kind,  they  thought,  to  take  so  much  of 
the  care. 

As  the  buildings  were  nearing  completion  Silence 
began  to  make  known  some  plans  that  she  had  been 
maturing  in  her  mind  ever  since  the  foundation  for 
the  house  was  laid.  They  were  to  go  into  the  new 
house,  and  a  lame  old  lady  would  not  be  an  attractive 
feature  of  the  residence  across  the  street,  was  inti- 
mated by  Silence.  When  this  subject  was  suggested 
to  Saul,  he  said  that  his  mother  could  remain  in  the 
old  house  and  they  could  provide  her  meals  for  her 
and  look  after  her  there.  But  no ;  Fuller  had  sided 
with  Silence,  and  he  said  that  the  house  must  come 
down  as  it  would  spoil  the  view  from  the  new  one, 
and  so  it  did  come  down ;  the  rear  buildings  before 
the  new  house  was  fully  ready.  Silence  concluded 
that  Mother  Pendleton  should  have  a  back  room  in 
the  new  house,  and  she  was  located  there. 

People  who  were  familiar  with  the  early  history  of 


THE    MYSTERIOUS    ROOM.   '  147 

the  Pendletons  would  say,  as  they  passed  by  or 
spoke  of  them  while  in  their  homes,  "  What  a  change 
for  the  better.  The  old  tyrant  gone,  a  fine  new  set 
of  buildings,  how  Saul  with  his  wife  and  old  mother 
must  enjoy  themselves."  But  how  deceptive  appear- 
ances often  are.  To  be  sure,  the  old  tyrant  was  gone, 
and  the  old  house  with  the  other  dilapidated  build- 
ings were  gone  and  a  nice  set  of  farm  buildings  was 
substituted  for  them.  Mother  Pendleton  was  located 
in  a  room  where  the  wind  or  storm  could  not  reach 
her  as  it  had  of  late  years  in  the  old  house ;  but  there 
was  a  new  tyrant  in  the  new  house  and  a  continual 
storm  that  seemed  never  to  abate. 

Fuller  called  about  three  months  after  they  were 
located  in  the  new  house  and  demanded  the  first 
instalment  of  interest.  This  was  astounding  to  both 
Saul  and  Silence.  They  had  mortgaged  the  farm  to 
Puller  for  the  -money  to  complete  the  buildings ;  so 
Puller  said  and  so  the  papers  indicated.  They  paid 
the  interest  and  thought  this  was  all,  as  they 
did  not  fully  understand  the  nature  of  a  mortgage, 
Silence  being  as  ignorant  of  business  as  her  husband. 
Saul  was  not  to  blame  for  this  ignorance  ;  but  he 
must  be  the  sufferer.  It  was  the  iniquity  of  the 
father  visited  upon  the  child.  Great  anxiety  did  not 
show  itself  on  the  part  of  Saul  and  Silence  until  a 
second  demand  was  made  by  Puller,  and  this  brought 
them  to  the  place  where  they  were  ready  to  send  for 
Mr.  Briggs,  before  whom  the  matter  was  laid.  He 
found  that  Puller  had  furnished  the  needful  money ; 
where  he  got  it  Mr.  Briggs  could  not  tell,  as  well  as 
what  became  of  the  quantity  that  Saul  had  when  his 
old  adviser  was  dismissed  by  Silence.  The  records 
showed  that  there  was  a  heavy  mortgage  on  the  whole 


148  L55GENDS    OF    OLD    BEDFORD. 

property,  and  the  old  lady  had  signed  the  papers  as 
well  as  Saul  and  his  wife,  and  she  was  in  a  fair  way 
to  come  to  want  before  she  died  if  her  life  was  pro- 
longed to  a  great  age.  After  telling  the  family  what 
they  had  unconsciously  done,  Mr.  Briggs  declined 
to  have  anything  further  to  do  with  the  matter  and 
started  for  his  home. 

Hannah  Nibbs,  who  was  ever  spiteful  after  Saul 
married  Silence,  did  not  hesitate  to  freely  say  that 
Fuller  took  the  money  from  Saul  to  pay  the  bills  and 
then  got  him  to  mortgage  the  farm  to  secure  him  for 
the  money  that  was  never  his.  No  one  can  tell  the 
truth  of  Hannah's  supposition,  but  she  was  not  alone 
in  that  opinion. 

It  was  too  late  now.  The  interest  was  accumulat- 
ing; Saul  was  obliged  to  cut  off  wood  to  meet  the 
payments  and  the  value  of  the  farm  was  fast  dimin- 
ishing. Saul  had  the  whole  of  his  mother's  property 
in  his  hands  through  the  aid  or  leadership  of  Fuller 
and  Silence,  and  Mother  Pendleton  did  not  know  it, 
yet  the  papers  were  duly  executed.  The  old  lady 
never  fully  realized  how  much  she  had.  The  re- 
peated demands  for  interest  prompted  Silence  to 
reveal  another  of  her  deep  laid  plans.  She  wanted  to 
sell  the  property  and  go  elsewhei^e  to  live ;  but  in 
order  to  do  this,  felt  obliged  to  make  some  plan  to 
dispose  of  the  old  lady.  She  proposed  to  give  some 
one  an  amount  of  money  "to  see  Saul's  mother 
through,"  as  he  had  legally  bound  himself  to  do. 
This  brought  tears  to  Saul's  eyes.  He  loved  his  old 
mother,  but  tears  were  of  no  avail  with  Silence.  She 
accomplished  her  undertaking,  and  Mother  Pendleton 
was  literally  sold  to  a  man  from  another  town,  packed 


THE    MYSTERIOUS    ROOM.  149 

up  with  her  few  furnishings,  to  be  provided  for  by 
strangers. 

"  She  can't  get  much  worse  treatment  than  she  has 
now,"  said  Hannah,  when  calling  on  Mrs.  Briggs 
after  this  change. 

Saul  was  blamed  from  one  end  of  the  town  to  the 
other,  but  he  could  not  help  it  now.  It  was  too  late  for 
him  to  have  any  influence  ;  he  was  a  mere  .underling. 
The  property  was  fast  going ;  through  his  ignorance 
he  had  been  defrauded  and  his  old  mother  as  well. 
If  this  punishment  could  have  fallen  on  the  elder 
Pendleton,  it  would  have  been  his  just  desert,  but  to 
come  upon  the  innocent,  upon  that  good,  blameless 
old  lady,  was  enough  to  arouse  the  passive  to  action. 

On  hearing  that  Mother  Pendleton  was  to  go  to  her 
new  home  on  a  certain  day,  Mrs.  Briggs  and  her 
niece  ventured  to  call  upon  her ;  and  it  was  upon  her, 
for  no  one  but  Saul  was  to  be  seen,  and  he  was  too 
much  troubled  to  speak,  so  the  kind  heart  of  Mrs. 
Briggs  deterred  her  from  adding  fuel  to  the  flame 
that  was  already  tormenting  him.  The  grief  of  the 
old  lady  was  very  affecting  to  her  friends.  She 
begged  to  be  led  around  where  the  old  house  stood 
that  she  might  just  look  once  more  into  the  cellar. 
This  was  done ;  and  on  the  arm  of  Mrs.  Briggs  and 
Betsey  she  leaned  while  saying,  "  There  was  where 
the  old  chimney  stood  where  my  husband  and  I  sat 
beside  each  other  so  many  evenings  when  the  chil- 
dren were  small.  I  spent  many  happy  years  in  that 
house ;  but  to  be  sure  my  husband  changed  before  he 
died  and  was  a  hard  man.  I  never  thought  I  was 
bringing  up  children  to  treat  me  this  way  in  my  last 
years.  Poor  Saul,  he  is  not  to  blame ;  he  has  gone 
over  to  that  Jezebel  of  his." 


150  LEGENDS  OF  OLD  BEDFORD. 

Mrs.  Pendleton  was  familiar  with  the  Scriptures 
and  had  been  quite  a  reader  and  thinker  in  her  early 
days,  and  in  these  trying  hours  happened  to  apply 
the  Old  Testament  story  very  aptly,  for  surely  Silence 
was  a  woman  of  a  very  bad  influence,  and  after  know- 
ing that  she  had  been  cheated  herself,  she  was  even 
more  unkind  than  when  she  thought  she  was  being 
shrewd  and  dealing  unjustly  with  others.  Two 
teams  were  seen  rising  the  hill,  which  brought  the 
trying  scene  to  a  close.  The  goods  were  packed  into 
one  and  the  good  lady  was  taken  into  the  other. 
Silence  did  appear  to  see  that  none  of  her  things  were 
carried  off,  as  she  said,  with  a  look  of  mingled 
shame  and  contempt. 

'^I  hope  they  will  bury  me  beside  my  husband," 
were  the  last  words  that  Mrs.  Briggs  heard  from  her 
friend  of  so  many  years  as  the  carriage  passed  down 
the  hill.  No  funeral  procession  ever  bore  to  a  grave 
a  more  afflicted  mourner  than  was  now  being  carried 
to  a  strange  place  and  among  strange  people. 

"God  will  punish  tliem  for  this,  you  say.  We  must  look 
farther  and  see.  Where  was  Seth  ?  We  know  that  ruin  has 
followed  in  his  path.  Where  were  the  daughters  ?  We  shall 
see  and  also  learn  what  other  trouble  is  hidden  in  the  homes 
of  the  Pendleton  family." 


A  Neighhor'8  Horn*. 


THE    MYSTERIOUS    KOOM.  151 

EIGHTEEN^TH  EVENING. 

^S^|g|r|^HEN  the  condition  of  affairs  was  known 
lin^/^/l  ^^^*o^o^  ^^®  community,  the  selectmen  of 
ir5%^^  the  town,  by  the  advice  of  Mr.  Briggs,  de- 
cided to  have  the  business  reviewed.  There  seemed 
to  be  a  chance  for  the  one  who  had  taken  Mother 
Pendleton  to  throw  her  upon  the  town  at  his  pleas- 
ure and  also  to  treat  her  unkindly  if  he  was  so  dis- 
posed, with  no  one  to  interfere.  If  there  was'  any 
way  to  secure  the  town  from  this  possibility  and 
make  the  old  lady's  comfort  more  secure,  they  deter- 
mined to  do  it.  A  lawyer  was  employed  and  the 
selectmen  met  with  him  in  council,  together  with 
Mr.  Briggs.  It  was  decided,  as  the  first  step,  that 
Mr.  Briggs  should  visit  each  of  the  three  children 
who  had  made  homes  for  themselves,  and  see  if  they 
would  not  attend  to  the  case  and  thus  prevent  the 
unpleasantness  of  a  public  investigation.  This  he 
very  reluctantly  consented  to  do,  and  in  company 
with  his  wife  Dolly,  started  out  on  the  first  conven- 
ient day.  They  first  drove  to  the  house  of  Mr.  Jones 
to  call  upon  Priscilla,  whom  they  had  seen  but  seldom 
in  her  home  since  the  marriage,  and  had  never  alluded 
to  business  affairs  since  the  last  division  of  the  prop- 
erty. It  was  plain  to  be  seen  that  Mr.  Jones  was 
greatly  disaffected  and  did  not  feel  kindly  towards 
any  one  in  the  church  or  parish.  Priscilla  was  as 
much  troubled  by  the  state  of  affairs  at  the  home- 
stead as  any  one,  and  would  gladly  have  prevented 
the  arrangement  made  for  her  mother's  care  if  she 
could ;  but  as  it  was  left  for  Saul  to  provide  for  the 
mother,  and  as  he  had  wasted  the  property  that  was 


162  LEGENDS  OF  OLD  BEDFORD. 

allowed  him  as  an  extra  portion  for  that  purpose,  she 
did  not  feel  that  she  ought  to  do  anything  about  it ; 
and  her  husband  was  not  willing  to  interfere  or  have 
his  wife  meddle  with  what  was  not  their  business. 
Having  willingly  consented  to  allow  Saul  all  that  was 
asked  for  the  care  of  his  mother,  and  as  she  was  sat- 
isfied with  the  provision,  they  considered  their  duty 
fully  discharged. 

It  was  very  apparent  that  Mr.  Jones  had  the  entire 
control  of  Priscilla's  business  affairs  as  well  as  of  all 
domestic  matters.  Her  will  power,  never  too  strong, 
seemed  entirely  lost  in  that  of  her  husband.  The 
Sabbath  morning  bell,  calling  the  people  to  the  ser- 
vice of  worship,  did  arouse  a  longing  in  her  heart  to 
take  her  accustomed  seat  in  the  meeting-house,  but  to 
no  avail.  She  was  obliged  to  occupy  a  straight- 
backed  chair  in  her  best  room  and  there  listen  to  her 
husband's  sermon,  prayers  and  songs,  participating  in 
the  latter  as  the  only  member  of  the  congregation. 
She,  however,  found  some  satisfaction  from  regularly 
attiring  herself  in  her  best  garments  and  sitting  as 
though  in  the  house  of  worship.  Mr.  Jones  pre- 
tended to  have  a  greater  veneration  for  the  evening 
of  Saturday  than  for  the  Sabbath,  and  he  required  all 
worldly  business  to  be  laid  aside  by  sun-down  on  Sat- 
urday night,  and  the  Sabbath,  so  tedious  to  Priscilla, 
was  very  much  lengthened,  although  after  sundown 
of  the  Sabbath,  she  was  allowed  to  look  into  Fox's 
Book  of  Martyrs  and  similar  works  other  than  the 
Bible. 

Keeping  Saturday  evening  as  holy  time  was  not 
peculiar  to  Mr.  Jones.  It  was  the  custom  of  those 
days.  The  Sabbath  was  kept  with  great  strictness. 
Nobody  was  expected  to  be  seen  on  the  street  in  time 


THE    MYSTERIOUS    ROOM.  163 

of  Divine  worship  except  officers  of  the  law,  and; 
they  were  appointed  to  search  the  town  and  look 
about  for  any  disobedient  or  irreverent  person.  Any 
reading  that  would  provoke  a  smile  on  a  child's  fac^ 
was  not  allowed.  Occasionally  a  parent  was  so  indul- 
gent as  to  permit  a  child  to  walk  out  in  the  fields 
after  sundown  on  the  Sabbath,  but  he  was  not 
allowed  to  pick  a  flower  or  gather  a  berry  that  he 
chanced  to  see  during  his  release  from  the  Sabbath 
confinement. 

Mr.  and  Mrs.  Briggs  left  the  house  of  the  Jones 
family  with  the  consciousness  that  Priscilla  had  not 
lost  her  regard  for  her  mother;  but  that  she  could 
not  take  her  parent  to  live  with  her  or  spend  money 
in  her  behalf. 

They  next  drove  to  the  home  of  Thomas  Stark,  and 
found  Sally  overjoyed  to  meet  them,  supposing  that 
they  had  come  for  the  day.  Mr.  Stark  was  not  a  par- 
ticular friend  of  Mr.  Briggs,  and  Sally's  marriage  was 
not  really  favored  by  him  or  his  wife.  He  would  not 
admit  that  Thomas  Stark  and  Sally  Pendleton  were 
ever  married.  "  Squared  together,"  he  said,  showing 
his  disapproval  of  their  plan  of  having  the  marriage 
ceremony  performed  by  a  Justice  of  the  Peacd ;  but 
they  were  lawfully  married.  "  Only  a  second-hand 
husband,"  Hannah  said,  and  declared,  perhaps  envi- 
ously, that  she  would  rather  have  none  at  all. 

Sally  was  not  aware  of  the  state  of  things  at  home. 
She  knew  that  her  mother  was  away,  but  did  not 
understand  the  occasion  of  it.  Mr.  Stark  was  many 
years  the  senior  of  his  wife,  and  did  not  go  about 
much,  so  she  did  not  get  the  news.  Hannah  was 
offended  with  them  and  did  not  call,  hence  there  was 
a  very  good   reason   for   the   ignorance,     Sally   was 


154  LEGENDS  OF  OLD  BEDFORD. 

grieved  and  indignant,  and  declared  that  her  mother 
should  come  and  live  with  her  and  promised  to  aid  in 
paying  the  expense  of  the  investigation;  but  when 
Mr.  Stark  appeared  he  put  an  end  to  that,  which 
brought  to  light  the  fact  that  Thomas  Stark  had  been 
providing  some  nice  liquor  of  late  for  his  wife,  and 
that  while  under  its  influence,  she  had  signed  away 
the  whole  of  her  property,  so  that  now  she  liad  no 
control  of  it  whatever,  and  she  could  not  do  for  her 
mother  what  her  heart  prompted.  She  loved  "toddy," 
and  had  indulged  her  appetite,  and  through  it  and 
ignorance  of  business,  had  signed  away  her  right  and 
placed  herself  in  a  position  where  she  might  become 
subject  to  the  unpleasant  control  of  the  grown-up 
children  of  her  husband  in  the  event  of  the  decease 
of  Mr.  Stark. 

Mr.  and  Mrs.  Briggs  left  the  Stark's  for  a  call  at 
Seth's,  expecting  no  better  results.  Seth,  as  usual, 
was  intoxicated;  the  children  were  caring  for  the 
house  and  barn,  which  showed  that  boys'  work  was 
not  very  thorough  unless  directed  by  some  one  who 
was  capable,  and  there  was  no  one  here.  Patty  of 
old  was  no  more  to  b3  seen.  There  was  a  worn-out 
figure  of  a  woman  in  fche  house,  but  it  was  not  Patty  ; 
her  mind  was  shattered  and  there  was  only  a  wreck 
of  the  once  trim,  faithful  woman,  wife  and  mother. 

With  sad  hearts  Mr.  and  Mrs.  Briggs  drove  to 
their  pleasant  home,  having  discharged  their  duty  as 
servants  of  the  town  and  as  true  friends  of  Mother 
Pendleton,  They  reviewed  the  condition  of  these 
four  children  of  Hezekiah  Pendleton  in  a  most 
thoughtful  manner,  when  duties  parinittei  them  to 
gather  at  their  pleasant  fireside,  and  contrasting  their 


THE    MYSTERIOUS    KOOM.  155 

situation  with  that  of  their  own  sons,  who  had 
become  honored  men  in  the  world,  they  were  more 
thankful  than  ever  that  they  had  reared  their  chil- 
dren in  a  different  manner. 

"Although  Mrs.  Briggs  was  not  known  by  that  name,"  said 
grandma,  "  when  you,  my  boy,  were  introduced  to  the  Pendle- 
tons,  but  having  always  lived  in  town  and  known  of  the  out- 
ward life  of  this  peculiar  family,  she  could  easily  understand 
the  inner  workings  of  that  part  of  their  history  which  you 
have  been  told  about,  before  Dolly  Sprague  left  the  home  of 
her  childhood  and  care  of  her  venerable  father." 

^'  Oh,  the  folly  of  living  for  money/'  exclaimed  Mr. 
Briggs,  after  seating  himself  by  the  little  round 
table.  "I  never  realized  it  more  than  at  this  mo- 
ment. If  the  sons  and  daughters  of  Hezekiah  Pen- 
dleton could  have  had  the  advantages  that  many 
young  people  have  enjoyed,  how  different  might  have 
been  their  condition.  The  far-sighted  minister,  Mr. 
Whitford,  looked  into  the  future  sufficiently  to  fear 
the  sad  ending  of  the  Pendletons,  and  did  all  in  his 
power  to  prevent  the  impending  evil ;  but  the  moth 
and  rust  of  this  world  had  so  far  corroded  the  mind 
and  soul  of  Hezekiah  Pendleton,  that  it  was  impossi- 
ble to  make  an  impression  upon  him ;  and  I  believe, 
in  the  sight  of  God,  he  is  the  one  charged  with  the 
blame;  and,"  continued  Mr.  Briggs,  "I  shall  be 
obliged  to  report  to  the  selectmen  that  the  children 
of  Mrs.  Pendleton  can  do  nothing  for  her." 

This  he  did.  The  authorities  went  on  with  the 
investigation,  only  to  find  that  the  custodian  of 
Mother  Pendleton  was  an  unprincipled  man,  and  that 
he  had  not  been  asked  to  give  bonds  for  the  fulfil- 
ment of  his  contract,  and  this  he  declared  he  would 


156  LEGENDS  OF  OLD  BEDFORD. 

not  do,  so  that  the  fears  of  the  authorities  were  well 
grounded  and  liable  to  become  realities. 

At  the  time  of  the  investigation  there  seemed  to 
be  no  indication  of  any  wrong  dealing  on  the  part  of 
the  custodian  of  Mother  Pendleton,  and  it  was  agreed 
that  she  was  better  off  than  when  under  the  care  of 
Silence  Baker,  as  she  was  always  known,  for  Mrs. 
Sparhawk  was  a  kind,  motherly  woman,  and  to  all 
appearances,  intended  to  deal  kindly  with  the  unfor- 
tunate mother. 

Ike  Fuller  was  pressing  Saul  in  every  way  he 
could,  and  as  the  months  passed  away  it  became 
apparent  to  Saul  and  Silence,  as  well  as  to  the  whole 
community,  that  he  was  as  bad  as  Hannah  Nibbs  had 
represented  him.  .About  two  years  from  the  time 
when  Mrs.  Briggs  made  her  last  visit  at  the  Pendle- 
tons,  Saul  made  a  hasty  call  at  the  home  of  the 
Briggs',  and  revealed  his  trouble  to  the  ever-faithful 
friend  of  his  parents,  as  well  as  of  himself.  That 
Ike  Fuller  was  going  to  sell  him  out  and  drive  him 
away  from  home,  was  a  difficulty  indeed,  and  a  mat- 
ter that  Mr.  Briggs  could  not  prevent.  It  was  too 
late.  With  the  artful  Fuller  on  one  side  and  the 
tyrannical  scold,  Silence,  on  the  other,  life  was  but  a 
burden  to  Saul  Pendleton.  He  had  seen  but  a  few 
happy  hours  in  the  new  house,  and  none  since  his 
aged  mother  had  been  carried  away  from  the  home  of 
her  right. 

Mr.  Briggs  feelingly  said,  "  I  am  sorry  for  you, 
Saul,  but  unless  you  can  meet  the  payments  accord- 
ing to  your  agreement,  you  must  endure  the  conse- 
quences." 

With  the  last  ray  of  hope  bedimmed,  Saul  Pendle- 


THE    MYSTERIOUS    ROOM,  157 

ton  walked  up  the  hill  to  his  home  with  a  crushing 
burden  upon  his  mind.  It  was  of  no  use  for  him  to 
go  into  the  house,  for  there  was  no  comfort  beneath 
that  roof  for  him.  The  true  wife  is  one  to  whom  a 
husband  can  unburden  himself  as  to  no  other  ;  but 
Silence  Baker  was  not  such  an  one.  She  married  for 
money ;  it  was  gone,  through  her  own  folly,  in  part ; 
but  that  did  not  change  her  feelings,  but  rather  made 
her  more  irritable.  Saul  could  not  think  of  facing 
the  harsh  treatment  that  would  be  meted  out  to  him 
if  he  went  into  the  house  and  told  the  decision  of  the 
^ne  in  whom  he  had  more  confidence  than  all  beside, 
for,  notwithstanding  the  manner  in  which  Saul  and 
Silence  had  treated  Mr.  and  Mrs.  Briggs,  they  still 
felt  them  to  be  their  only  trusty,  faithful  friends ;  and 
really  they  were  true  to  the  noble  character  they  had 
always  borne,  with  reputation  unsullied.  It  was  too 
late  for  them  to  aid  in  this  matter.  Ike  Fuller  stood 
before  the  down-hearted  Saul,  in  vision,  like  a  fiend 
from  a  land  of  darkness.  In  the  quiet  of  this  mid- 
night hour  of  his  career,  he  was  confronted  by  a 
power  outside  of  himself.  How  long  Saul  suffered 
in  mind  in  view  of  his  condition,  we  cannot  tell.  All 
we  know  is,  that  when  Silence  became  anxious 
enough  about  her  troubled  husband  to  go  out  and 
search  for  him,  it  was  but  to  find  his  lifeless  body  in 
the  old  cellar  across  the  highway,  close  by  the  chim- 
ney where  the  tearful  eyes  of  the  aged  mother  last 
rested  before  she  was  taken  from  her  home. 

Mr.  Briggs,  who  was  called,  did  his  duty.  The 
sympathy  of  the  community  was  with  the  feeble  old 
lady,  who  now  thought  of  her  son  as  at  rest,  where 
.she  longed  to  be.     A  grave  was  made  for  Saul  near 


158  .LEGENDS    OF    OLD    BEDFORD. 

that    of    his    father,    where    a   headstone   had   been 
erected  with  the  inscription  : 

"  Sacred  to  the  memory  of  Hezekiah  Pendleton,  wha 
departed  this  life,  November  27,  aged  94  years." 

Hannah  did  not  hesitate  to  say  that  Ike  Fuller  waa 
seen  out  on  that  memorable  night ;  but  she  was  very 
thoughtless  oftentimes  of  the  feelings  of  others,  aa 
well  as  of  her  own  safety  in  regard  to  the  control  of 
the  law.  As  soon  as  the  heat  of  the  excitement  was 
over  through  the  community,  Ike  Fuller  took  legal 
steps  and  the  Pendleton  farm  was  sold  to  a  worthy 
family  from  Boston.  Silence  determined  to  do  some 
damage  when  she  found  she  must  leave;  so  she 
stripped  off  paper  from  the  walls,  tore  out  such  orna- 
ments as  she  could  take  away,  and  so  damaged  the 
house  that  what  she  would  have  had  to  carry  away 
with  her  was  very  much  reduced  in  satisfying  those 
who  had  bought  the  property.  With  her  few  scant 
bundles  she  left  the  hill,  with  what  feelings  we  may 
never  know. 

"I  know  that  your  mind  lingers,"  said  grandma,  "  with  the 
good  old  mother,  whose  cup  of  sorrow,  it  seems,  must  have 
been  full." 

She  was  trained  in  her  early  life  by  godly  parents, 
and  the  principles  of  the  Christian  religion  were  so 
wrought  into  her  very  life  that  she  had  more  to  lean 
upon  than  her  children  had,  and  as  one's  early  life 
becomes  more  vivid  in  their  later  years,  so  her  early 
habits  of  prayer  and  dependence  on  God  became  more 
real  —  became  a  part  of  her  being.  The  chapters  of 
Scripture,  and  hymns  that  she  had  committed  to 
memory   when    young,    were    now   familiar    to    her  ^ 


THE    MYSTERIOUS    ROOM.  159 

and,   as    she    said,    "they   were    her   meat   and    her 
drink." 

It  is  doubtful  if  one  of  her  children  had  as  peace- 
ful an  end  as  had  she ;  but  it  was  very  different  from 
what  it  should  have  been.  Her  last  hours  were 
passed  at  the  home  of  a  friend  in  her  native  town, 
and  her  care  was  paid  for  by  the  same  authorities 
who  annually  sold  the  paupers  to  the  lowest  bidder. 
True  friends  administered  to  her  wants.  Priscilla 
tearfully  closed  her  eyes,  while  Mrs.  Briggs  com- 
mended her  spirit  to  God  who  gave  it. 

"Now,  my  boy,"  said  grandma,  "you  cannot  fail  to  see 
that  the  love  of  money  was  the  root  of  the  evil  in  this  family, 
and  to  furnish  you  with  a  reminder  of  this  story  —  of  the  down- 
fall of  this  family,  of  the  deception  of  another,  and  the  fol- 
lies of  many  individuals,  as  well  as  the  virtue  of  others,  I  will 
give  you  this  silver  crown,  which  for  years,  doubtless,  gratified 
the  eyes  of  Hezekiah  Pendleton  as  it  shone  in  the  dim  light  of 
the  Mysterious  Room." 


160 


LEGENDS    OF    OLD    BEDFORD. 


THE   SILVER   CROWN. 


NIKETEENTH  EVENING. 

I^^EZEKIAH  PENDLETON  was  a  Tory,  in  full 
sympathy  with  the  Royalists,  hence  at  enmity 
with  all  neighbors  and  people  who  set  them- 
selves against  the  oppressive  measures  of  George  III. 

He  claimed  kinship  with  the  house  of  Brunswick, 
the  truth  of  which  no  one  was  at  pains  to  verify,  but 
many  saw  in  his  tyrannical  disposition  traits  so  much 
like  those  of  the  obnoxious  sovereign  that  they  were 
inclined  to  believe  his  claims  were  well  founded. 

He  never  manifested  more  joy  than  when  the 
Stamp  Act  was  proclaimed  in  the  Province.  He  early 
made  the  acquaintance  of  Andrew  Oliver,  the  ap- 
pointed agent  for  stamped  paper,  and  hoped  to  secure 
a  quantity  to  sell  at  a  profit  to  his  town's  people.  He 
made  frequent  calls  at  Oliver's  house,  and  was  said  to 
have  been  present  when  the  effigy  of  the  unpopular 
agent  was  burnt  before  his  own  door. 


THE    SILVER    CROWN.  161 

Mr.  Pendleton,  in  his  younger  days,  made  his  trips 
to  Boston  in  the  night,  and  his  sly  acts  were  not  so 
easily  detected. 

The  elder  Fuller  reported  that  his  neighbor  Pen- 
dleton was  in  a  rage  when  he  called  at  his  home  soon 
after  the  destruction  of  Oliver's  house  and  the  sack- 
ing of  Chief  Justice  Hutchinson's.  This  convinced 
the  people  that  the  well-known  Tory  was  aware  of 
the  bold  proceedings,  if  not  a  sorrowful  witness  of 
the  destruction. 

He  was  served  with  a  copy  of  the  notice  posted  in 
Boston,  which  read  as  follows  :  — 

^'ProPatria. 

"  The  first  man  that  either  distributes  or  makes 
vise  of  stamped  paper,  let  him  take  care  of  his  house, 
'■^rson,  and  effects. 

"We  dare.     Vox  Populi." 

There  was  rejoicing  in  the  town  when  the  Stamp 
Act  was  repealed,  as  there  was  among  all  who  opposed 
the  measure.  The  ranks  of  the  Royalists  were  rapidly 
thinning,  but  few  were  now  found  in  the  little  town 
who  would  shout  with  Hezekiah  Pendleton:  "God 
save  King  George  ! " 

Mr.  Pendleton  heard  the  continual  ringing  of  the 
bell  at  the  training-field,  and,  foaming  with  indigna- 
tion, galloped  into  the  town,  his  faded  scarlet  cloak 
flapping  in  the  breeze,  reined  up  his  steed,  and  ordered 
the  bell-man  to  stop. 

"  You  are  one  of  them  traitors,  are  yer  ?  Do  you 
mean  to  ruin  the  bell  house  ?  " 

His  authority  was  of  no  avail ;  the  bell  continued 
to  ring,  and  he  returned  to  his  home  filled  with  indig- 
nation. 


162  LEGENDS  OF  OLD  BEDFORD. 

Some  of  General  Gage's  troops  were  occasionally 
seen  galloping  up  the  lull  towards  Mr.  Pendleton's, 
or  dashing  off  the  back  way  to  Boston.  As  they 
molested  no  one,  they  were  not  disturbed  until  the 
time  came  when  some  decided  action  was  apparent  ; 
then  the  officers  of  the  town's  militia  set  a  guard  and 
the  movements  of  Hezekiah  Pendleton  were  carefully 
noted. 

The  ministers  who  favored  the  cause  of  the  Prov- 
ince were  preaching  against  tyranny  with  all  their 
eloquence,  but  the  pastor  of  this  town  was  silent  on 
the  question.  "  Not  a  fit  subject  for  the  pulpit,"  he 
said.  He  entertained  as  strong  Tory  sentiments  as 
prudence  would  allow.  He  knew  that  a  large  part 
of  his  flock  was  against  him.  He  was,  in  reality,  in 
full  sympathy  with  Mr.  Pendleton,  and  made  frequent 
calls  at  the  home  of  this  unpopular  parishoner. 

While  the  people  of  the  town  were  making  sacri- 
fices to  aid  the  poor  who  were  shut  up  in  Boston,  Mr. 
Pendleton  was  slyly  communicating  with  the  King's 
officers,  and  supplying  them  with  the  best  produce  of 
his  farm  at  fabulous  prices  and  hoarding  the  proceeds 
away  from  the  eyes  of  all.  He  boasted  of  having 
supplied  the  detested  occupants  of  the  Province  House 
with  his  butter,  eggs  and  poultry. 

Mr.  Pendleton  declared,  if  the  unsettled  feelings 
ever  culminated  in  open  rebellion,  he  would  pack  his 
things  and  go  to  a  province  that  was  sensible. 

"I'll  never  pay  a  cent  of  tax  to  oppose  cousin 
George ! "  shouted  Mr.  Pendleton  in  town  meeting 
when  the  question  was  being  discussed  of  raising 
money  to  meet  the  demands.  This  was  the  first  time 
that  the  Tory  had  openly  proclaimed  the  degree  of 
relationship  to  the  tyrant  across  the  Atlantic.     Could 


THE    SILVER    CROWN.  163 

the  arrogant  monarch  have  seen  his  pretended  kins- 
man we  doubt  not  he  would  have  been  willing  to 
sacrifice  the  aid  being  rendered  his  cause  rather  than 
have  acknowledged  the  tie.  It  was  on  the  last  day 
of  June  of  the  same  year  that  the  freemen  met  at  the 
meeting-house  "  To  know  and  determine  what  meas- 
ures are  Proper  to  be  taken  at  this  present  time  of 
Trouble  and  Distress."  The  minister  opened  the 
meeting  with  prayer,  as  was  the  custom.  Every  word 
of  his  petition  was  carefully  watched  to  see  if  any 
Tory  sentiment  could  be  detected.  He  was  appar- 
ently praying  to  the  people  rather  than  the  Lord, 
and  knew  it  would  not  be  prudent  to  give  utterance 
to  what  was  in  his  heart. 

Mr.  Pendleton  was  early  at  the  meeting,  and  at- 
tempted to  express  his  ideas  on  the  whole  state  of 
affairs,  but  found  it  difficult  to  be  heard,  as  the  many 
were  against  him  and  his  lordly  cousinship  across  the 
water.  The  question  of  providing  for  the  poor  who 
were  being  sent  out  from  Boston  to  be  supported  by 
the  towns  was  discussed  at  this  time. 

With  all  the  other  burdens  falling  upon  the  people 
this  was  a  severe  test  of  the  patriotism  of  the  voters. 
When  Mr.  Pendleton  spoke  on  this  subject  they 
seemed  more  willing  to  listen  :  "You'll  every  one  of 
you  be  paupers  'fore  you  git  through  this,  and  it 's 
what  you  deserve,  too.  Besides  supporting  our  own 
poor,  you  see  we  've  got  a  lot  of  them  ragged  rebels 
from  Boston  to  feed,"  said  Mr.  Pendleton.  It  was 
voted  that  when  this  town's  share  arrived  they 
should  be  sold  at  vendue,  the  lowest  bidder  to  have 
one  or  more. 

As  the  spring  of  1775  drew  near,  an  accommodating 
illness  secured  for  Mr.  Pendleton  a  relief  from  train- 


164  LEGENDS  OF  OLD  BEDFORD. 

ing  with  the  militia  company  to  which  he  belonged. 
He  had  prided  himself  on  being  a  faithful  military 
subject  of  the  King,  and  was  always  on  duty  at  all 
trainings  and  musters;  but  he  would  not  use  his  skill 
in  preparing  to  oppose  the  mother  country.  There 
was  no  escape  for  his  sons  ;  they  must  join  the  minute 
men  and  be  ready.  "Keady  for  what?"  said  the 
father,  when  the  constable  called  in  the  exercise  of 
his  duty.  "  Keady  to  meet  Gage's  troops,"  was  the 
iprompt  reply.  '^  You  'd  better  never  meet  them  un- 
less you  want  to  be  swallowed  —  the  whole  of  you," 
said  the  Tory.  "King  George '11  find  us  a  harder 
load  to  carry  than  the  whale  did  when  he  took  Jonah 
on  board,"  replied  the  constable,  as  he  gave  the  official 
notice  for  Seth  and  Saul  Pendleton  to  meet  with  the 
minute  men  on  the  following  day  for  regular  drill. 

When  away  from  the  father's  influence  the  two 
young  men  fell  into  line  in  good  order  and  required 
but  little  watching. 

When  the  alarm  of  the  movements  of  the  British 
reached  the  Pendleton  home  on  the  night  of  April  18, 
Seth  and  Saul  responded  to  the  message,  and  were 
early  at  Fitch's  tavern,  ready  for  marching  orders. 
Hezekiah  Pendleton  boldly  declared  that  he  hoped 
every  one  of  the  rebels  would  be  killed,  not  with- 
holding his  own  sons  from  the  sweeping  denunciation. 
Even  the  persuasions  of  his  old  neighbor  Maxwell, 
with  whom  he  had  fought  the  French,  were  not  suffi- 
cient to  turn  him  from  his  Tory  sentiments. 

It  was  fortunate  that  the  Pendleton  home  was  not 
on  the  line  of  the  march  of  the  militia  and  minute 
men  of  the  town,  or  it  would  have  been  destroyed; 
for  the  Tory  had  displayed  a  rude  design  representing 
the  Lion  and  Unicorn,  the  arms  of  the  kingdom. 


THE    SILVER    CROWN. 


165 


Fitch's  Tavern. 


Later  in  the  day,  when  the  sad  tidings  of  the  fight 
at  Concord  reached  Mr.  Pendleton,  and  the  death  of 
his  neighbor,  Capt.  Wilson  of  the  minute  men,  was 
announced,  and  also  the  wounded  condition  of  another 
made  known,  he  simply  said :  "  I  told  you  so.  You 
ought  to  have  known  better,'^  and  then  shut  himself 
away  from  the  sight  of  those  who,  in  their  sorrow 
and  excitement,  went  from  house  to  house  to  discuss 
the  whole  affair. 

Mrs.  Pendleton  would  gladly,  have  gone  to  work, 
as  did  her  neighbors,  in  the  preparation  of  food  for 
the  army  at  Cambridge,  but  the  head  of  the  family 
effectually  vetoed  any  such  action,  and  succeeded  in 
withholding  his  sons  from  voluntarily  going  into  camp 
at  Cambridge,  which  they  were  ready  to  do. 

It  soon  became  impossible  for  the  Tory  to  dispose 


166  LEGENDS  OF  OLD  BEDFORD. 

ol  his  produce  to  the  British  officers,  and  his  greed 
for  gain  led  him  to  look  about  for  a  way  to  make 
something  out  of  the  Continental  army.  He  had 
refused  to  acknowledge  the  commissions  of  the  offi- 
cers of  the  army,  but  after  all  other  sources  of  income 
had  vanished,  was  ready  to  turn  about,  so  far  as  there 
was  money  to  be  gained  from  acknowledging  the 
authority  of  the  Congress  of  which  John  Hancock 
was  president.  Mr.  Pendleton  had  some  personal 
acquaintance  with  him,  and  esteemed  him  as  a  friend. 
He  had  emptied  his  saddlebags  many  times  at  the 
Hancock  warehouse,  sampled  the  liquors  and  reloaded 
with  merchandise  for  home  and  neighborhood  use. 
He  had  hoarded  away  many  a  coin  from  the  Hancock 
till.  His  love  for  money  overcame  his  prejudice  for 
those  now  in  power  who  had  a  liberal  portion  of 
wealth.  He  carefully  scrutinized  each  coin  paid  to 
him,  and  kept  a  set  of  small  scales  in  which  to  test 
the  value.  When  the  Continental  bills  were  issued 
he  sternly  refused  to  accept  them  as  of  any  value, 
ignoring  paper  currency  as  long  as  he  could,  but  at 
length  accepted  a  quantity  which  he  stored  away, 
having  a  silent  belief  that  it  would  greatly  increase 
his  wealth  at  some  future  time. 

The  officers  of  the  t^own  correctly  interpreted  the 
change  in  the  attitude  of  the  Tory  towards  the  au- 
thorities, and  when  they  were  called  upon  to  supply 
hay  and  wood  for  the  army,  refused  to  purchase  of 
him.  This  was  a  great  trouble  to  the  man,  for  he 
had  a  large  quantity  of  the  best  of  wood,  and  here 
was  a  good  market,  with  the  town  as  paymaster. 
His  sentiments  had  been  too  freely  expressed  to  be 
overlooked  for  his  advantage,  and  while  six  cords  of 
wood  and  two  loads  of    hay  were  being  taken  to 


THE    SILVER    CROWN.  167 

Cambridge  daily  from  the  town,  none  of  Mr.  Pendle- 
ton's stock  would  be  accepted.  This  so  angered  him 
that  he  refused  to  pay  the  oft-repeated  call  for  taxes. 
He  declared  he  had  no  money,  and  dared  the  con- 
stables to  make  the  collection.  Men  who  did  not 
cringe  at  the  point  of  the  bayonet  at  Concord  and 
Bunker  Hill  were  not  to  be  baffled  by  one  Tory,  and 
they  levied  on  his  stock  of  oak  and  maple,  and  took 
it  away  for  the  tax  to  help  support  the  army  fighting 
against  the  cause  that  Mr.  Pendleton  claimed  was 
just  and  right  in  the  sight  of  all  good  men  and  God 
as  well.  Mrs.  Pendleton  did  not  sympathize  with 
her  husband  in  his  unpopular  sentiments,  and  would 
gladly  have  spun  and  woven  to  make  blankets  for  the 
soldiers,  but  she  was  not  allowed  to  do  anything  of 
the  kind.  It  was  almost  impossible  to  find  another 
house  in  the  town,  save  that  of  the  parson,  where 
the  wheel  and  loom  were  not  kept  busy  in  the  prepa- 
ration of  supplies  for  the  army. 

When  the  town's  share  of  Boston  poor  was  put  at 
vendue,  Hezekiah  Pendleton  was  in  attendance.  He 
saw  a  possible  chance  to  make  some  money ;  all  other 
families  were  busy  in  the  interests  of  the  "rebel 
army,"  and  this  was  his  opportunity.  So  he  bid  the 
lowest,  and  four  of  the  poor,  frightened  mortals  —  one 
family  —  were  set  off  to  the  Tory  at  ten  shillings  a 
week,  "  hard  money,"  and  what  they  could  do.  Their 
lot  was  hard  enough  —  willing  to  work  at  home,  but 
deprived  of  its  meagre  comforts,  and  parceled  out  in 
this  way  was  cruel  indeed.  It  was  one  of  the  many 
sufferings  that  war  entails.  The  able-bodied  men 
were  in  the  army ;  the  aged  and  infirm,  with  women 
and  children,  constituted  the  company  of  enforced 
paupers. 


168  LEGENDS  OF  OLD  BEDFORD. 

The  town's  folks  generally  regretted  the  result  of 
this  provision  for  the  poor  of  Boston. 

The  only  hope  of  just  treatment  being  rendered 
at  the  Tory's  home  was  the  kind  heart  of  the 
mother  and  the  willingness  of  the  daughters  to 
aid  in  carrying  out  her  wishes  as  far  as  it  was  pos- 
sible. 

The  selectmen  had  received  this  notice  :  — 

"  Boston,  May  7, 1775.  The  bearer,  Mrs.  Mehitable 
Melville,  and  her  family,  removing  out  of  the  town  of- 
Boston,  are  recommended  to  the  charity  and  assist- 
ance of  our  Benevolent,  Sympathizing  Brethren  in 
the  several  towns  in  this  Province.  By  order  of  the 
Committee  of  Donations. 

Alex  Hodgdon,  Clerk." 

Catnip  had  been  the  family  beverage  at  the  Pendle- 
ton's before  the  opposition  to  the  tax  on  tea  and  other 
articles  was  publicly  announced.  The  poor  fared  the 
same  as  the  family  in  this  particular,  but  it  was  only 
the  beginning  of  their  hardships.  They  were  too 
feeble  to  work,  but  compelled  to  do  service  on  the 
farm,  and  scantily  and  poorly  fed,  only  when  some- 
thing extra  was  slyly  passed  out  to  them  by  those 
who  did  not  sympathize  with  the  head  of  the  family. 
They  were  allowed  to  serve  the  neighbors,  after  hav- 
ing done  a  day's  work  for  Mr.  Pendleton;  and  there 
were  several  people  who  were  actuated  by  sympathy 
to  employ  them.  The  feeble  mother  in  this  family  of 
Boston's  poor  was  a  capable  woman,  and  her  ability 
soon  recommended  her  to  a  neighbor  of  means.  She 
supplemented  her  day's  work  for  the  Tory  by  faithful 


THE    SILVER    CROWN.  169 

service  for  this  new  friend,  for  which  she  was  well 
paid.  Her  hard-earned  coin  prompted  the  avaricious 
tyrant  to  offer  her  better  food  and  more  of  it,  and 
she  thereby  gained  strength  for  her  double  service. 
It  was  not  for  herself;  her  mother's  heart  prompted 
her  to  exert  every  power  to  satisfy  the  yearnings  of 
young  children  who  could  not  understand  why  these 
privations  were  inflicted.  She  continued  to  perform 
these  duties  until  illness  prevented,  when  it  was  more 
difficult  to  endure  the  hardships,  for  they  increased 
rather  than  lessened. 

Mehitable  Melville  was  the  head  of  the  unfortu- 
nate family.  In  addition  to  the  privations  at  the 
Pendleton's,  she  had  reason  to  believe  that  her  hus- 
band had  been  killed  in  the  army,  or  taken  as  a  pris- 
oner of  war.  Her  last  and  only  hope  of  securing  any- 
thing beyond  the  bare  necessities  of  life  was  a  string 
of  gold  beads  which  she  held  as  an  heirloom  and 
which  she  had  frequently  noticed  attracted  the  atten- 
tion of  her  Tory  keeper. 

It  was  the  pastor  who  was  expected  to  look  after 
all  cases  of  poverty  or  injustice  in  the  town,  and  one 
might  have  wondered  why  it  was  that  these  poor 
strangers  in  his  midst  were  so  neglected.  While  Mr. 
Pendleton  denied  his  family  many  of  the  necessaries 
of  life,  he  did  not  fail  to  occasionally  leave  a  cheese 
or  sparerib  at  his  pastor's  door.  This  inclined  the 
clergyman  to  the  belief  that  his  parishoner  was  judged 
too  severely.  The  fact  that  the  parson  and  Tory  were 
in  sympathy  on  the  political  questions  of  the  day 
might  have  been  received  as  a  partial  explanation  of 
neglect  of  duty. 

Mehitable  Melville  was  missed  from  her  allotted 


170  LEGENDS  OF  OLD  BEDFORD. 

task  one  cold  day,  and  her  youngest  child  was  alsa 
missing ;  the  latter  caused  no  anxiety  to  the  Tory,  it 
was  the  mother  who  must  be  found.  Search  being 
made,  her  hiding-place  was  detected  by  the  voice  of 
the  child  in  seeming  distress.  It  was  ill  and  the 
mother  was  stealing  her  time  to  care  for  it.  The 
privilege  was  not  denied  the  woman,  although  Mr. 
Pendleton  growled  not  a  little  at  the  '"'waste  of 
time."  The  child  grcAv  worse.  Mrs.  Pendleton 
and  her  daughters  did  all  in  their  power  to  aid  and 
relieve  the  sufferer.  Doctor  Ballard  came,  his  benig- 
.  nant  face  gleaming  with  light  and  cheer,  and  brought 
sunshine  to  the  heart  of  the  troubled  mother,  although 
he  was  obliged  to  tell  her  that  she  must  part  with  the 
child.  Once  it  would  have  been  much  harder  for  the 
mother  to  meet  this  sorrow.  She  was  granted  extra 
comfort  in  the  home.  It  would  not  do  to  allow  the 
good  doctor  to  see  what  privations  she  had  endured. 
He  was  a  determined  opponent  to  King  George,  hav- 
ing served  the  town  as  a  member  of  the  Provincial 
Congress.  Mr.  Pendleton  did  not  refuse  to  allow  the 
mother  and  child  the  comfort  of  an  extra  fire  on  the 
hearth,  and  other  things  for  which  she  was  told  she 
must  pay  him,  even  to  the  sacrifice  of  her  gold  neck- 
lace. 

At  length  the  child  died,  and  was  buried  among 
strangers  in  the  village  burial  yard. 

"When  life  seemed  the  darkest  to  Mrs.  Melville 
relief  came  to  her  troubled  heart.  The  way  was 
opened  for  the  poor  to  return  to  Boston.  Col.  Mel- 
ville was  alive.  Into  the  arms  of  her  faithful  hus- 
band she  rushed,  and  to  their  former  home  they  joy- 
fully returned,  where,  as   never  before,  they  appre- 


THE    SILVER    CROWN,  171 

ciatecl  all  that  could  be  enjoyed  in  a   once-divided, 
but  now  reunited  family. 

"  But  one  dead  lamb  was  there." 

Notwithstanding  all  the  sorrow  experienced  at  the 
home  of  the  Pendletons,  Mrs.  Melville  often  longed 
to  go  back.  It  was  the  vacant  chair  at  her  fireside 
that  caused  these  yearnings.  Her  husband  had  re- 
ceived part  payment  for  his  services  in  the  army  in 
worthless  paper  currency,  and  they  now  were  obliged 
to  struggle  together  for  the  necessaries  of  life. 

At  length  came  relief  to  the  colony  from  "His 
Most  Christian  Majesty,  our  excellent  ally."  The 
fleet  of  D'Estaing  was  loaded  with  King  Louis'  silver 
crowns.  This  precious  freight  was  stored  in  Han- 
cock's building,  where  was  the  ofiice  of  the  deputy 
paymaster-general  of  the  Continental  Army.  Col. 
Mellville,  with  the  others,  received,  a  share  of  these 
bright  crowns,  bearing  the  impress  of  Louis  XV. ; 
and  the  relief,  so  long  delayed,  was  now  at  hand. 
Hezekiah  Pendleton  was  the  only  man  known  by 
Mrs.  Melville  who  could  tell  where  the  stranger's 
grave  was  made  in  the  burial  yard,  and  to  him  was 
entrusted  the  duty  of  erecting  a  little  stone  at  the 
lonely  mound.  He  performed  his  duty.  More  than 
a  century  has  passed,  but  the  little  moss-covered 
stone,  half  hidden  in  the  midst  of  the  grass  and 
daisies,  tells  its  story,  and  suggests  to  the  thoughtful 
wanderer  among  the  memorials  of  the  past,  an  un- 
written volume  of  sorrow  and  sacrifices,  in  part  the 
price  of  our  liberty. 

To  pay  for  this  little  memorial  of  a  parent's  love, 
Mehitable  Melville  parted  with  her  brightest  crown  j 


172 


LEGENDS    OF    OLD    BEDFORD. 


and  it  was  added  to  the  hidden  store  of  the  Pendleton 
home,  there  to  remain  till  death  broke  the  seal,  and 
the  mysterious  room  gave  up  its  contents. 


The  little  Grave  among  the  Daisies. 


"Every  name  we  read  in  rugged  and  lialf-worn  capitals  re- 
calls some  page  of  romantic  history,  some  career  over  which 
the  archaeologist  may  linger  with  affectionate  remembrance; 
wafts  legendary  stories  from  the  dim  twilight  of  the  past,  and 
recalls  traditions  which  years  may  have  buried  amid  the  lum- 
ber of  our  recollections." — Tennyson. 


THE  WITCH   OF   SHAWSHINE, 


TWENTIETH  EVENING. 

jHE  Pilgrim's  century  was  taking  a  last  look 
at  the  world  when  the  humble  farmhouse  of 
Solomon  Gray  received  a  new  tenant ;  and 
the  new  century  had  but  just  dawned  when  Eev. 
Thomas  Barnard  dipped  his  goose-quill  and  entered 
in  the  records  of  the  North  Parish  Ghurch  of  Cochi- 
chawick,  "Baptized  Miriam,  daughter  of  Solomon 
Gray." 

"  A  precarious  time  to  be  ushered  into  the  world/' 
muttered  the  parson,  when  making  the  sixth  entry 
of  baptism  on  the  first  Sabbath  of  the  opening  year. 
These  had  all  been  born  within  a  week,  and  through 
this  ordinance  the  parents  had  tried  to  secure  for 
their  respective  babes  a  safe  passport  to  the  realm  of 
bliss  in  case  the  fates  decreed  that  their  little  hands 
should  be  folded  in  death  before  their  lips  could  be 
taught  to  lisp  their  Maker's  praise. 

No  one  can  wonder  that  the  parson  shook  his  head 
in  foreboding  as  he  entered  the  name  of  the  new-born 
child.  The  unsettled  state  of  society  in  this  town 
and  the  others  round  about  cast  a  gloom  over  the 
present  and  future.  The  scenes  on  Gallows  Hill,  in 
the  neighboring  town,  where  the  condemned  witches 
had  been  hung,  were  still  fresh  in  the  minds  of  the 
people.  It  was  well  known  that  the  mother  who 
had  welcomed  her  ninth  babe  with  the  rising  sun  of 
this  Sabbath  morning,  was  one  who  gave  testimony 
against  Martha  Carrier  in  the  trial  of  August,  1692. 


174  LEGENDS  OF  OLD  BEDFORD. 

Born  beneath  the  shadow  of  such  a  scourge  as  Salem 
witchcraft,  and  of  a  mother  who  had  fallen  a  prey  to 
the  deluding  influence,  it  would  not  be  strange  if  this 
new  babe,  and  others  that  were  hastened  out  of  the 
rude  cradle,  only  to  see  their  places  filled  by  their 
counterparts  in  swaddling  clothes,  should  suffer  from 
unfortunate  birth-marks. 

There  was  a  seeming  rustle  in  the  congregation  in 
the  primitive  meeting-house  when  Parson  Barnard 
dipped  water  from  the  pewter  basin,  laid  his  reverent 
hand  upon  the  little  brow,  and,  in  measured  tones, 
uttered  the  prescribed  words  :  "  Miriam,  I  baptize 
thee  in  the  name  of  the  Father  and  of  the  Son  and 
of  the  Holy  Ghost,  Amen."  The  deacons,  in  their 
elevated  seats  beneath  the  more  elevated  pulpit,  were 
seen  to  exchange  glances,  and  their  wives,  on  the 
"  woman's  "  side  of  the  meeting-house  were  staring  at 
their  companions,  while  others,  versed  in  the  Old 
Testament  Scriptures,  gave  involuntary  nods  of  their 
h^.ads. 

When  leaving  the  house  of  worship  some  were 
heard  to  say,  "This  one  is  to  be  a  prophetess." 
When  Deacon  Goodwin  had  joined  his  family  he 
dared  to  quote  in  this  connection  the  song  of  Miriam, 
the  sister  of  Moses  and  Aaron,  "  May  she  sing  to  the 
Lord,  for  he  hath  triumphed  gloriously  ;  the  horse 
and  his  rider  hath  he  thrown  into  the  sea."  Miriam 
was  the  acknowledged  queen  of  the  cradle,  and  entitled 
to  the  service  of  the  older  children,  until  in  turn  after 
two  years  she  was  tumbled  out  to  make  way  for  a 
burly  successor. 

The  children  growing  up  together  were  regularly 
seen  in  the  family  pew  at  church  each  Sabbath,  and 
in  the  winter  their  presence  could  be  detected  by  as 


THE    WITCH    OF    SHAWSHINE. 


175 


many  breaths  puffed  out  between  the  ornamental  bal- 
usters of  the  partition  walls  into  the  frosty  atmos- 
phere of  the  meeting-house,  like  the  steam  of  an 
equal  number  of  teakettles  hanging  from  a  kitchen 
crane. 


A  Family  Cradle. 

Not  one  of  the  children  of  Solomon  Gray  was  more 
regular  at  school  than  Miriam,  the  ninth.  She  was 
the  first  to  answer  the  questions  of  the  pastor  when 
catechising  the  pupils  in  the  old  log  school-house. 
Not  one  in  the  school  was  more  sure  of  keeping  her 
feet  at  the  recitation-crack  of  the  rude  floor  than  this 
black-eyed  girl;  while  at  the  home  of  the  Gray's, 
Miriam  was  a  leading  member.  At  the  age  of  twelve 
she  could  turn  off  a  good  skein  of  linen,  and  about 
match  her  mother  in  the  knots  of  yarn  from  the  great 
wheel,  as  they  counted  up  a  day's  work  in  the  busy 
season  of  preparation  for  the  winter.  She  learned 
many  of  the  out-door  mysteries  of  the  farm  before 
reaching  her  "  teens,''  and  often  put  her  elder  brothers 
to  shame  by  taking  less  time  to  get  a  brimming  pail 
of  milk  than  they  required.  The  boys  declared  that 
"Old    Chestnut"   and    ''High    Horn"   knew   when 


176  LEGENDS  OF  OLD  BEDFORD. 

Miriam  pressed  her  soft  hands  to  their  flesh,  and 
rewarded  her  gentle  touch  with  but  little  effort  on 
her  part,  but  stubbornly  withheld  the  white  nectar 
when  they  sat  down  to  press  it  from  the  udder. 
Whether  the  boys  were  right  in  their  opinion,  or 
whether  they,  as  many  others,  did  not  like  to  admit 
the  superior  ability  of  a  girl,  we  will  not  decide. 

In  the  church  records  of  a  town  twenty  miles- 
nearer  the  source  of  the  river  there  was  recorded,  on 
the  second  Sabbath  of  the  eighteenth  century,  the 
baptism  of  Benjamin,  son  of  Solomon  Fay.  He  was 
one  of  a  large  family  in  the  town  which  for  a  while 
bore  the  name  of  the  stream  that  winds  through  its 
eastern  acres.  After  attaining  his  majority  Benjamin 
bought  of  Michael  Bacon  the  corn-mill  on  the  Shaw- 
shine  and  began  business  for  himself.  The  legacy 
from  his  father's  estate  was  sufficient  to  purchase 
this  place  of  business  and  the  rude  dwelling  near  the 
mill-house.  The  river  was  a  convenient  highway  be- 
tween the  villages  of  Cochichawick  ^  and  Shawshine,^ 
and  in  the  absence  of  trodden  paths  through  the  for- 
ests, intercourse  between  the  villages  was  commonly 
carried  on  by  the  way  of  the  stream.  On  either  side 
of  it  were  remnants  of  Indian  villages,  and  now  and 
then  a  scattering  group  of  the  original  owners  of  the 
soil  could  be  seen  in  the  distance.  They  offered  no 
sign  of  hostility.  Their  war-like  leaders  were  gone, 
and  their  courage  had  abated,  while  not  a  few  had 
learned  of  the  gospel  of  peace  from  Eliot  and  Gookin,. 
and  come  to  regard  the  white  men  as  friends. 

When  nearing  Shawshine  the  rolling  and  tumbling 
of  the  water  indicated  an  obstruction  in  the  channel, 
and  the  traveller  was  obliged  to  abandon  his  canoe» 

lAndover.  2  Bedford. 


THE    WITCH    OF    SHAWSHINE.  177 

Here  was  the  mill  where  Benjamin  Fay  had  begun 
business.  His  customers  were  the  brave  pioneers 
for  miles  about  the  stream.  The  hours  were  few 
in  the  week  when  some  one  dressed  in  sheepskin 
breeches  and  homespun  frock  was  not  seen  standing 
by,  waiting  to  have  his  yellow  corn  ground  into  the 
steaming  meal. 


The  modern  Mill  on  the  Shawshine. 

Benjamin's  need  of  a  helpmeet  was  generally  con- 
ceded by  the  people  of  the  town.  But  he  seldom 
went  away  from  his  business  except  on  the  Sabbath, 
and  it  was  thought  for  a  while  that  he  was  not  fully 
aware  of  his  greatest  need. 

"  Benjamin,  the  miller,  has  gone  down  stream.  He 
goes  often  these  days,"  said  the  youth  in  charge  of 
the  stones  to  an  inquisitive  customer  on  an  early 
Monday  morning. 

"  I,  I,  "  says  the  inquiring  farmer,  who  impatiently 
waited  for  his  grist,  "  guess  that  means  something.'^ 

The  miller  was  never  known  to  go  so  happily  about 
his  work  as  when  returning  from  one  of  these  jour- 
neys down  the  stream.     The  reason  of  this  could  only 


178  LEGENDS  OF  OLD  BEDFOKD. 

be  conjectured  for  some  months,  but  at  last  became 
apparent.  At  a  Sabbath  morning  service  in  the  month 
of  May,  the  clerk  of  Shawshine  arose  in  his  seat  and 
read  with  measured  words  :  "  Marriage  intended  be- 
tween Benjamin  Fay  of  Shawshine  and  Miriam  Gray 
of  Cochichawick." 

The  announcement  was  made  according  to  law  on 
three  successive  Sabbaths,  and  so  the  people  knew 
full  well  that  the  miller  would  not  make  the  import- 
ant trip  down  the  river  until  the  prescribed  time  had 
passed. 

The  months  of  extra  spinning  and  weaving  at  the 
farm-house  of  Solomon  Gray  now  began  to  have  a 
meaning  to  the  people  of  that  neighborhood,  for  the 
same  intention  had  been  proclaimed  to  them  by  the 
clerk  of  that  town,  and  Miriam's  companions  had 
learned  who  the  sly  visitor  was  that  anchored  his 
boat  at  her  father's  landing.  The  misses  made  haste 
to  add  articles  to  her  stock  of  linen,  and  the  matronly 
neighbors  gathered  about  the  quilt ing-frames  and  plied 
their  deft  fingers  until  "  herring-bones  "  and  "  tortoise 
shells  "  were  seen  on  each  j)atchwork  square.  There 
were  the  venerable  mothers,  in  cap  and  spectacles, 
who  recalled  the  days  of  old,  who  had  heard  Mrs. 
Gray  give  that  memorable  testimony  against  the 
witch,  and  who  had  tossed  their  knowing  heads  when 
Parson  Barnard  laid  his  hands  in  baptism  upon  the 
infant  brow.  One  did  not  fail  to  whisper  what  many 
thought :  "  Does  the  miller  know  that  she  inay  turn 
out  a  witch  ?  " 

The  weeks  passed  rapidly  at  the  village  of  Shaw- 
shine, and  the  miller's  assistant  was  again  in  charge. 
The  news  spread  through  the  village,  and  many  a 
curious  farmer  filled  his  little  sack  with  rye  or  corn, 


THE    WITCH    OF    SHAWSHINE.  179 

and  made  haste  to  the  mill,  impatient  for  a  fresh 
grist.  The  miller's  boat  was  not  at  its  usual  mooring. 
This  was  the  only  suggestive  sign  besides  the  absence 
of  the  skilful  miller. 

'^  Will  soon  arrive,"  was  whispered  from  home  to 
home.  Curiosity  seasoned  with  fear  filled  the  minds 
of  many  good  people.  Coming  events  had  cast  their 
shadows  before,  and  the  people  of  the  village  of  Shaw- 
shine  were  not  ignorant  of  the  superstitions  of  Cochi- 
chawick.  Not  a  few  declared  that  their  quiet  neigh- 
borhood was  doomed,  for  a  witch  was  coming  to  take 
up  her  abode  at  the  miller's  house,  and,  what  was 
worse  than  all,  to  be  the  miller's  wife. 

While  the  villagers  south  of  the  "  Dam  "  were  busy 
in  speculation  and  wonder,  the  inhabitants  on  the 
shores  of  the  stream  twenty  miles  to  the  northward 
were  making  merry  at  the  home  of  Solomon  Gray. 

In  the  pale  moonlight  of  a  June  evening  a  happy 
group  was  seen  to  weigh  anchors  and  paddle  away 
from  the  farmer's  landing.  Such  a  fleet  had  never 
before  glided  over  the  surface  of  this  Indian  stream. 
The  chatting  in  the  bridal  bark  could  well  be  com- 
pared to  that  of  the  robins  already  mated  for  their 
summer's  bliss,  while  the  friendly  canoes  which  led 
and  followed  carried  those  whose  mating  was  not  yet 
perfected. 

The  moon  seemed  never  to  have  shed  more  silvery 
rays  than  those  which  fell  upon  the  bridal  party  as 
they  glided  over  the  water.  On  the  marshy  edges  of 
the  sluggish  river  could  be  seen  now  and  then  the 
purple  petals  of  a  tardy  rhodora,  and  the  overhanging 
maples  dropped  their  brilliant  keys  on  the  bridal  party 
as  it  neared  the  winding  banks. 

Solomon  Gray  had  a  tithing  of  an  income  from  an 


180 


LEGENDS    OF    OLD    BEDFORD. 


"  English  Eight "  —  an  estate  in  the  mother  country. 
His  annual  remittance  this  spring  had  been  taken  in 
broadcloth  of  brightest  scarlet  with  plumes  to  match. 


The  Bridal  Party. 

^'  A  strange  order  indeed  ! "  said  the  family  agent, 
when  enclosing  Solomon  Gray's  with  those  of  the 
other  nine,  and  giving  orders  to  his  associate  across 
the  water.  The  brightest  tints  of  the  early  flowers 
could  not  be  compared  with  the  scarlet  drapery  that 
enfolded  the  graceful  form  of  Miriam,  the  miller's 
bride.     Her  full  black  eyes  and  raven  locks  were  in 


THE    WITCH    OF    SHAWSHI^TE.  181 

striking  contrast  to  the  mantle,  while  the  brilliant 
plumes  that  decked  her  broad-brimmed  jaunty  hat  rose 
far  above  the  less  pretentious  costumes  of  the  escort- 
ing party.  It  was  a  question  whether  it  was  not  the 
brilliant  moonlight  scene  that  aroused  the  nesting 
red-breast  and  called  forth  his  early  matin  notes  as 
the  ten  canoes  drew  near  the  miller's  landing. 

The  weary  eyelids  of  anxious  neighbors  had  closed, 
and  the  youthful  band  who  kept  midnight  vigil  had 
broken  up  before  the  bridal  party  moored  their  boats, 
hence  the  merry  company  reached  their  destination 
all  unnoticed.  The  flickering  lights  of  numerous 
candles  in  the  miller's  home  were  not  detected  by 
any  one  at  Shawshine,  and  the  happy  voices  of  the 
departing  escort  were  unnoticed  as  the  company 
weighed  anchor  in  the  twilight  of  early  morning  and 
left  the  miller  alone  with  his  bride. 

More  than  one  housewife  of  the  town  declared  her 
meal  chest  empty  that  week,  and  the  tall  bin  of 
Benjamin  Fay  was  brimming  full  long  before  Satur- 
day night. 

"Never  mind,"  said  his  assistant.  ''There  '11  be  a 
lull  in  business  after  Sunday,  and  you  '11  have  no 
further  use  for  me." 

The  miller  was  fortunately  ignorant  of  the  gossip 
of  the  town,  for  no  busybody  had  warned  him  of 
impending  evil ;  no  traveller  had  asked  a  seat  with 
him  when  on  his  pleasant  trips  up  or  down  the  river, 
and  so  his  cup  of  happiness  was  full. 

The  homes  about  the  river  were  scattering.  Far- 
ther up  the  stream  was  the  Shawshine  house  —  an 
old  Indian  trading-post,  where  the  natives  were  wont 
to  barter  with  the  white  pioneers.  The  home  of 
Captain  Page,*  the   old   Indian  hunter,  was   not  far 


182 


LEGENDS    OF    OLD    BEDFORD. 


THE    WITCH    OF    SHAWSHINE. 


183 


away.  These,  with  Michael  Bacon's,  that  stood  on  a 
bhiff  farther  down,  and  some  distance  from  the  stream, 
were  the  only  houses  of  the  neighborhood,  save  that 
which  belonged  to  the  miller's  estate.  The  miller's 
house  was  often  known  as  "number  twelve"  —  a 
garrison  in  Philip's  war,  where  Bacon's  mill,  now 
Benjamin  Fay's,  had  been  guarded  from  the  skulking 
red  men  by  two  soldiers,  allowed  for  its  protection 
by  the  order  of  Stephen  Tyng,  the  commander  of  his 
Majesty's  troops. 


Michael  Bacon's  Home. 


The  notes  of  the  old  bell  never  sounded  sweeter 
to  Benjamin  Fay  than  on  the  morning  of  that  June 
Sabbath  when  he  placed  the  noon  lunch  for  two  in 
the  saddle-bag,  helped  his  bride  to  the  pillion,  placed 
his  feet  in  the  stirrups,  and  galloped  off  to  the  village 
meeting-house. 

They  passed  many  a  bare-foot  lad,  with  shoes  in 
hand,  who  cast  inquiring  eyes,  and  not  a  few  of 
more  mature  years  slackened  their  pace  as  the  miller's 
horse  drew  near.     There   were   those  who   lingered 


184 


LEGENDS    OF    OLD    BEDFORD. 


about  as  the  bridal  couple  approached  the  house  of 
worship,  but  all  were  too  busy  in  their  talk  to  offer 
assistance  at  the  horse-block.  Benjamin  managed  his 
nettling  steed  with  one  hand,  and  with  the  other 
aided  his  bride  in  alighting.  The  actions  of  the 
miller's  horse  plainly  indicated  that  he  was  not  accus- 
tomed to  the  burden  of  the  morning,  and  the  reins- 
man  betrayed  inexperience  to  the  bystanders. 


It  required  urgent  circumstances  to  detain  any  one 
from  this  morning  service,  and  the  pews  were  well 
fiUed  before  the  miller  arrived.  All  eyes  were  on 
the  family-seat  of  the  elder  Fay,  not  knowing  that 
the  young  man  had  purchased  all  but  the  widow's 
thirds  in  the  Fassett  pew.    So  Benjamin  and  his  bride 


THE    WITCH    OF    SHAWSHIXE.  185 

were  well  seated  before  many  were  aware  that  they 
had  entered  the  house.  The  scarlet  plumes  were 
soon  detected  by  the  most  observing,  but  some  of  the 
more  devout  had  not  grasped  the  situation  until  the 
congregation  rose  for  the  "long  prayer/'  when  all 
had  plenty  of  time  to  "  see  the  bride."  The  prayer 
was  never  so  long  as  on  this  morning,  thought  Benja- 
min and  Miriam.  It  was  not  altogether  in  their  feel- 
ings, for  it  was  of  unusual  length,  as  many  had  asked 
a  share  in  its  interest.  Madam  Jones  had  buried  her 
husband  since  the  last  Sabbath,  so  she  had  presented 
a  petition  to  the  Throne  of  Grace  that  the  bereave- 
ment "might  be  sanctified  to  her  and  her  family  for 
their  spiritual  good."  Deacon  Merriam  had  narrowly 
escaped  a  watery  grave,  and  had  requested  the  parson 
to  "return  thanks"  for  him.  Phoebe  Smith  desired 
prayers  that  she  might  be  safely  delivered  from  im- 
pending danger,  while  others  had  requested  and 
received  attention  in  the  morning  petition. 

The  bride  could  not  have  selected  a  more  unfortu- 
nate color  for  her  costume,  although  it  contrasted 
finely  with  her  eyes  and  hair.  A  people  who  already 
believed  that  the  new  comer  was  doomed  from  birth 
saw  enough  in  the  brilliant  clothes  to  convince  them 
that  there  was  truth  in  the  rumor  which  had  gone  out 
from  the  last  quilting  of  winter. 

"  I  told  you  so !  "  were  the  whispered  words  from 
one  to  another,  as  the  congregation  broke  up.  Not  a 
few  of  the  worshipers  made  haste  to  the  burial  ground 
to  eat  their  lunch,  and  offered  no  greetings  to  the 
miller  and  his  bride  during  the  noon  intermission. 

Time  passed  on.  The  miller  pursued  his  business, 
and  his  faithful  wife  performed  her  part  in  the  rude 
dwelling.      The  Eev.   Nicholas  Bond   and   his  wife 


186  LEGENDS  OF  DLD  BEDFORD. 

made  their  accustomed  call  at  the  miller's  home,  but 
no  liquor  was  served  with  the  wedding  cake.  This 
breach  of  etiquette  was  not  reported  by  the  first  call- 
ers, but  the  few  parishioners  who  afterward  discharged 
the  claims  of  society  did  not  hesitate  to  lay  this  omis- 
sion to  the  bride.  They  were  ready  to  charge  any 
unwelcome  change  of  affairs  to  her.  The  slightest 
unusual  phenomenon  was  attributed  to  a  mystical 
power  which  they  had  been  led  to  believe  was  the 
birth-mark  of  Miriam  Gray.  Many  of  the  people  of 
Shawshine  never  called  upon  the  new  resident  until 
the  scarlet  garments  were  temporarily  exchanged  for 
those  of  a  more  sombre  hue,  and  some  not  then. 

The  words  of  the  miller's  assistant  had  now  become 
true,  and  he  was  able  to  carry  on  his  business  alone 
and  had  much  time  to  spare.  Other  troubles  followed 
the  promising  marriage.  A  protracted  drought  caused 
the  Shawshine  River  to  dwindle  to  a  trickling  brook ; 
the  mill  was  silent ;  the  farmers  had  no  means  of 
grinding  their  corn,  and  water  for  their  cattle  could 
only  be  obtained  at  great  pains.  Prayers  were  offered 
at  the  meeting-house  "that  the  bottles  of  heaven 
might  be  unstopped."  When  the  faith  of  the  people 
had  been  long  and  severely  tried,  and  their  wrath  had 
been  kindled  against  the  innocent  wife  of  the  miller, 
the  equinoctial  rains  came  on,  and  all  nature  assumed 
its  wonted  condition  ;  but  the  superstitions  of  many 
of  the  people  did  not  abate,  and  the  most  friendly 
advances  of  the  innocent  woman  were  rudely  spurned. 

Years  rolled  on,  and  new  subjects  for  conversation 
came  and  went.  Some  parents  did  not  fail  to  whisper 
to  their  children  that  there  was  a  mystery  about  the 
miller's  wife,  and  they  were  taught  to  believe  that 
the  scarlet  cloak  and  plumes  would  yet  appear  to  cast 
some  unfriendly  shadow. 


THE    WITCH    OF    SHAWSHIXE.  187 

Benjamin  Fay  and  his  wife  were  regular  in  their 
accustomed  pew  at  meeting.  They  brought  one  after 
another  of  their  infants  and  dedicated  them  to  the 
Lord  after  the  custom  of  the  age ;  but  all  this  did 
not  change  the  sentiment  of  many  of  the  people  of 
Shawshine.  Even  the  schoolmaster's  reports  of  the 
kindness  of  Mrs.  Fay  during  his  "  boarding  round  " 
had  but  little  effect  in  allaying  the  prejudices  of  the 
people  of  the  district.  The  black-eyed  children  of 
the  miller  found  but  few  associates  at  the  school, 
and  they  were  the  first  to  reveal  to  the  faithful  wife 
and  mother  the  mystery  of  her  life  at  Shawshine. 

Benjamin  Fay  was  faithful  to  his  marriage  vows, 
and  shielded  his  companion  from  the  sorrow  which 
would  have  filled  her  life  had  she  known  that  her 
peculiar  treatment  was  due  to  her  parentage  and  early 
life. 

Age  began  to  make  its  furrows  on  the  once  rosy 
face  of  Miriam,  and  to  silver  with  gray  her  once 
raven  locks ;  but  her  earnest  expression  of  counte- 
nance plainly  indicated  that  she  was  bent  on  breaking 
down  the  superstitions  of  years,  and  removing  the 
jealousies  of  blinded  ignorance. 

The  alarming  scourge  of  throat  distemper  visited 
the  colony,  and  the  village  of  Shawshine  did  not 
escape.  Child  after  child  died  of  the  dreadful  dis- 
ease, but  it  did  not  enter  the  home  of  the  miller. 
^^  Few  people  ever  call  on  the  Fays  "  was  the  reason 
assigned  by  one,  when  the  third  little  coffin  was 
carried  out  from  the  home  of  John  Whitmore,  and 
the  group  of  mourners  marched  off  with  measured 
step  to  add  one  more  to  the  long  line  of  new-made 
graves  in  the  burial  ground. 

The  heart  of  Miriam  Fay  was  filled  with  sympathy 


188  LEGENDS  OF  OLD  BEDFORD. 

for  her  stricken  neighbors,  and  so,  after  using  all 
known  precautions  in  her  own  family,  she  started 
out  to  the  relief  of  others.  The  first  thing  that  met 
the  eyes  of  the  afflicted  Whitmores  on  their  sad 
return  to  the  surviving  members  of  the  family,  was 
the  scarlet  cloak  of  the  miller's  wife.  The  dreaded 
woman  was  busily  engaged  in  packing  the  throats  of 
the  remaining  children  with  what  seemed  to  Mrs. 
Whitmore  to  be  a  compress  of  the  tansy  that  grew  by 
her  door,  and  a  decoction  of  the  same  herb  was  being 
prepared  by  the  open  fire.  "This  is  what  I  have 
used  with  my  children,  and  by  the  blessing  of  God 
they  are  all  spared  to  us."  With  these  encouraging 
words  Mrs.  Fay  left  the  family. 

This  woman  had  not  failed  to  profit  by  her  mother's 
instructions.  She  had  often  longed  to  help  others  in 
distress,  but  the  scarlet  wrap  which  defied  the  wear 
of  a  lifetime,  was  looked  upon  as  a  shroud  of  mys- 
tery, and  had  often  debarred  the  innocent  owner  from 
administering  comfort  to  neighbors  in  distress,  and 
her  inherited  spirit  of  independence  had  added  strengtk 
to  the  barrier.  In  one  case,  at  least,  the  obstruction 
was  removed,  and  the  heart  of  Miriam  Fay  was  found 
to  throb  with  love  for  God  and  man. 

The  disease  was  arrested  in  the  Whitmore  family,, 
and  the  simple  means  of  prevention  were  effectually 
applied  in  other  homes,  and  by  people  who  reluctantly 
concluded  that  it  might  be  possible  for  a  witch  to  do- 
one  good  deed  with  many  evil  ones. 

Love  of  freedom  was  a  lesson  faithfully  taught 
by  example  and  precept  in  the  home  of  Solomon 
Gray,  and  Miriam  had  imbibed  the  spirit.  She 
had  been  called  to  mourn  the  loss  of  two  brothers, 
who  perished  with  Lovewell    at  Pigwacket  in  that 


THE    WITCH    OF    SHAWSHl  N^E.  189 

most  deadly  conflict  of  Indian  warfare.  This  did  not 
deter  her  from  action :  it  rather  made  her  more  bold 
and  determined.  She  was  left  one  day  alone  with 
two  soldiers,  who  had  charge  of  the  garrison;  her 
keen  black  eyes  detected  a  skulking  Indian  near  the 
house,  and  failing  to  arouse  the  sluggish  guards  and 
convince  them  of  impending  danger,  she  took  a 
musket  and  discharged  it  at  what  they  said  was  only 
a  clump  of  brush;  but  she  had  the  gratification  of 
seeing  a  dead  Indian  roll  from  his  hiding-place. 

Miriam  Fay  seemed  inspired  with  the  ardor  of 
youth  as  the  days  of  the  Revolution  drew  near,  and 
her  bending  form  became  more  erect  as  she  fitted  out 
her  sons  for  the  army.  She  discarded  tea  and  every- 
thing of  foreign  flavor  long  before  the  people  of 
Shawshine  adopted  the  bill  of  non-intercourse,  and 
she  was  seldom  seen  in  her  scarlet  cloak,  for  there 
was  a  tinge  of  royalty  about  those  thread-bare  folds. 
The  minute-men  were  drilling  twice  each  week  in  the 
training-field  of  Shawshine,  and  the  wits  of  men  and 
women  alike  were  exercised  to  thwart  the  encroach- 
ments of  the  "  Red-coats." 

People  of  this  town,  like  others  of  the  colony, 
hardly  knew  whether  they  were  looking  into  the 
face  of  friend  or  foe,  as  they  went  about  their  accus- 
tomed walks.  It  required  but  the  slightest  indication 
to  brand  one  with  the  stigma  of  "  Tory." 

While  the  excitement  was  raging  at  Shawshine, 
Miriam  Fay,  then  past  threescore  years  and  ten,  was 
seen  at  early  dawn,  dressed  in  her  scarlet  cloak,  dash- 
ing towards  her  home  on  the  miller's  horse.  She  was 
now  classed  among  the  Tories  —  a  companion  of  Heze- 
kiah  Pendleton.  The  miller's  life  and  property  were 
threatened,  and  had   it   not   been   for   the   mystical 


190  LEGENDS  OF  OLD  BEDFORD. 

power  supposed  to  be  vested  in  her,  the  family  would 
have  been  separated  and  the  property  confiscated  by 
the  government,  before  she  could  have  proved  her 
loyalty  to  the  cause  of  the  Colonists. 

The  scarlet  broadcloth  and  plumes,  although  dingy 
with  age,  were  a  good  match  for  the  red-coats,  which 
were  plentiful  in  Boston,  and  not  infrequently  seen 
on  the  backs  of  soldiers  skulking  about  this  neighbor- 
hood. 

The  British  generals,  eager  to  get  informatian  of 
the  movements  of  the  Colonists,  were  ready  to  adopt 
any  means,  and  extended  a  welcome  to  any  one  who 
offered  assistance. 

They  had  no  doubt  th^t  the  woman  in  scarlet  was- 
a  friend  of  the  Eoyal  cause,  and  gave  diligent  heed  to 
her  story  and  plans.  They  agreed  to  meet  her  at  a 
time  and  place  appointed,  and  thankfully  bade  her 
good-night,  as  she  dashed  out  from  their  quarters  in 
her  haste  to  reach  her  home  before  the  break  of  day. 

It  was  past  the  following  midnight  when  John 
Whitmore  was  called  from  his  bed  by  a  man  in  mili- 
tary costume,  and  being  mistaken  for  a  Tory  was  en- 
trusted with  the  secret  of  the  distressed  man  and  his 
associates. 

A  woman  in  a  scarlet  cloak  had  visited  their  head- 
quarters on  the  previous  night  and  agreed  to  reveal  a 
secret,  if  they  would  come  on  the  following  midnight 
and  bring  a  reward. 

Believing  that  she  had  the  key  to  the  colonial  store- 
house, they  had  made  sure  to  meet  her.  The  sup- 
posed Tory  in  scarlet  had  led  them  by  the  light  of  a 
flickering  candle  through  a  subterranean  passage  and 
over  the  swollen  stream  by  means  of  a  narrow  plank 
to  a  cavern  beyond,  where  she  had  extinguished  the 


THE    WITCH    OF    SHAWSHINE.  191 

light  and  retraced  her  steps,  piilled  the  bridge  after 
her,  emptied  their  saddle-bags  of  the  golden  crowns, 
and  retired  to  her  house. 

In  the  darkness  and  mystery  of  the  liour,  foiled  by 
the  shrewdness  of  a  woman,  the  proud  generals  were 
directed  back  to  their  quarters  by  one  who  was  as 
great  an  enemy  to  their  cause  as  the  woman  in  scarlet 
had  proved  to  be. 

During  the  long  and  trying  years  of  the  war  for  in- 
dependence a  more  loyal  woman  or  more  faithful  spin- 
ner and  weaver  could  not  be  found  than  Miriam  Fay. 

No  one  sent  more  helpful  packages  to  the  sufferers 
in  camp  and  hospital,  and  all  of  the  service  was  given 
without  drawing  on  the  limited  treasury  of  the  town 
or  colony. 

The  helpful  words  of  this  patriotic  woman  gave 
cheer  to  the  people  of  Shawshine  in  their  struggles  to 
meet  the  demands  for  men  and  money,  and  when  they 
all  assembled  at  the  meeting-house  to  engage  in  a  ser- 
vice of  thanksgiving  after  the  surrender  of  Cornwallis, 
the  cracked  voice  of  Miriam  Fay,  "  the  Witch  of 
Shawshine,"  could  be  plainly  heard  through  the  con- 
gregation as  it  joined  in  the  words  of  Miriam  of  old, 
"  Sing  to  the  Lord  for  he  hath  triumphed  gloriously ; 
the  horse  and  his  rider  hath  he  thrown  into  the  sea." 


192 


LEGENDS    OF    OLD    BEDFORD. 


A  POD    OF   NINE   PEAS. 

THE    SECRET    OF   A    WRETCHED    LIFE. 


TWENTY-FIRST  EVENING. 

;HE  sky  was  overcast  with  the  floating  clouds 
of  a  June  day  rain  in  New  England.  The  soft, 
muddy  road  of  a  suburban  village  of  Boston 
was  desolate,  save  now  and  then  a  straggling  boy  wend- 
ing his  way  from  school.  One  delinquent  halted  to 
spat  the  mud  with  his  bare  feet  and  try  his  willow 
stick  on  the  br indie  cow  that  had  jumped  the  pasture 
wall,  tempted  by  the  sweeter  clover  of  the  highway. 
He  heard  the  slow  and  measured  tread  of  horses'  feet, 
hastened  not  by  the  sudden  dash  of  rain  from  the 
floating  cloud,  and  saw  the  village  hearse  coming  to- 
wards him.  With  boyish  timidity  he  hid  behind  the 
wall  until,  feeling  that  he  was  unobserved,  he  raised 
his  head  and  counted  one  —  two  —  all  had  passed. 


A    POD    OF    NINE    PEAS.  193 

Then  with  reasserted  bravery  he  stood  erect  and 
meditated,  half  aloud :  "  Whose  funeral  is  that  ?  Them 
is  the  overseers  of  the  poor  in  the  first  wagon,  and 
that  is  John  Spinal  in  the  poor  farm  carriage.  He 
keeps  that  place.    'Tis  a  pauper  that 's  being  buried  — 

'  Rattle  his  bones  over  the  stones ! 
He's  only  a  pauper,  whom  nobody  owns! ' 

That's  what  grandma  used  to  sing." 

With  these  lines  running  in  his  mind  and  thought- 
lessly muttered  aloud,  the  boy  went  about  his  part  of 
the  chores  at  the  farm,  and  when  putting  the  last 
armful  of  wood  in  the  kitchen  wood-box,  he  met  his 
grandmother,  with  anxious  brow  peering  from  the 
broad  ruiile  of  lace  that  protected  the  scanty  gray 
locks  of  her  honored  head,  who  exclaimed : 

"  What  are  you  saying  those  lines  for,  my  boy  ?  " 

"  Why,  grandma  I  I  heard  you  sing  them  with 
Aunt  Urana,  when  I  was  a  little  chap,  and  was  n't 
that  a  pauper's  funeral  that  I  saw  this  afternoon  when 
I  was  getting  home  from  school  ?  " 

"  One  of  the  old  people  at  the  poor  farm  was  buried 
to-day,  but  you  should  not  speak  of  her  in  that  way," 
said  grandma,  reprovingly. 

"  Well,  them  two  carriages  had  nobody  in  them  but 
the  folks  that  take  care  of  the  poor,  and  I  never  saw 
a  funeral  with  only  two  carriages,"  continued  the  bare- 
foot lad,  now  growing  somewhat  thoughtful.  ''Ah," 
said  grandma,  "you  have  yet  to  learn  that  the  worth 
of  a  person  is  not  measured  by  the  number  of  car- 
riages that  follow  the  body  to  the  grave,  although 
wealth  is  too  often  indicated  in  that  way." 

The  curiosity  of  the  boy  was  now  fully  aroused,  and 
he  continued  his  argument,  all  the  time  whittling  the 


194  LEGEXDS  OF  OLD  BEDFORD. 

knotty  end  of  a  pine  stick  on  which  his  eyes  were 
fixed, 

"Did  that  woman  ever  have  friends,  and  did  she 
ever  live  anywhere  else  ?  " 

"Yes,  my  child,  and  when  you  want  a  good,  long 
story,  some  stormy  evening,  I  will  tell  you  all  about 
her,  and  try  to  convince  you  that  to  be  poor  is  not  to 
be  despised,  and  that  to  be  wealthy  is  not  to  be 
respected  always  ;  but  grandma  is  busy  now  and  must- 
go  about  her  work."  So,  with  a  loving  pat  on  the 
head,  she  dismissed  her  favorite,  feeling  confident  that 
the  lesson  wou\d  not  be  soon  forgotten. 

The  evening  soon  came  when  the  boy  sat  on  the 
stool  at  his  grandmother's  feet,  with  his  elbows  on 
his  knees,  hands  clasping  his  chin,  and  face  upturned 
to  her,  who,  with  the  heel  of  her  stocking  well  set, 
started  on  with  the  foot  and  the  story. 

"Near  by  the  house  where  I  was  born,  in  an  old, 
red  mansion  facing  the  south,  approached  from  the 
highway  by  a  winding  lane,  lived  a  family  highly 
respected  by  all  the  folks. 

■  "  They  had  a  good  farm  and  knew  how  to  carry  it 
on,  too.  The  best  of  butter  and  cheese  was  made  by 
Aunt  Nancy,  that  is  what  all  the  folks  called  the 
good  woman,  and  Uncle  John,  her  husband,  always 
had  the  best  cows  and  fattest  pigs  in  the  neighbor- 
hood. There  were  three  children,  two  daughters  and 
a  son.  I  used  to  go  to  school  with  them  all.  They 
were  fine  looking,  but  one  of  the  girls  had  rosy  cheeks 
and  a  complexion  envied  by  us  all.  She  was  one  of 
the  best  scholars  and  always*  stood  well  in  her  classes^ 
and  when  we  had  a  good,  old-time  spelling  school  in 
the  evening,  she  was  sure  to  stand  up  till  the  last  or 


A    POD    OF    NINE    PEAS.  195 

near  it.  She  was  the  youngest  of  the  three,  and  the 
pet  of  the  household  and  neighborhood  as  well. 

"  She  was  never  taught  to  control  the  bad  temper 
that  she  had  by  nature,  and  it  often  got  the  control 
of  her  in  company  as  well  as  at  home.  You  think  it 
is  hard  when  you  can't  have  your  own  way,  and  your 
little  will  has  to  yield ;  but  had  she  been  obliged  to 
give  up  her  stubborn  will  to  those  who  were  older 
and  better  fitted  to  say  what  was  for  her  good,  she 
might  have  had  a  smoother  life.  The  few  years  of 
her  school  life  soon  passed,  as  they  did  with  many 
of  us,  for  we  did  not  have  the  advantages  for  getting 
an  educatiou  that  you  have  nowadays.  When  we  got 
through  the  district  school  we  could  n't  go  off  to  an 
academy  ;  our  parents  could  n't  afford  that,  so  we  got 
what  we  could  at  the  old  red  schoolhouse,  and  then 
took  our  place  at  the  spinning-wheel  and  churn  and 
helped  our  mothers,  who  had  much  more  to  do  in 
order  to  keep  the  family  properly  clothed  and  fed 
than  mothers  do  in  these  days. 

"But  Miranda  was  an  exception;  she  was  not  re- 
quired to  do  anything ;  her  hands  were  so  soft  and  her 
skin  so  pretty  that  her  mother  and  older  sister  did  the 
work,  and  Little  Miranda,  as  her  mother  called  her, 
had  her  own  way,  —  just  as  you  often  wish  you  could 
do ;  but  it  was  bad  for  her,  as  it  is  for  most  children, 
for  when  they  get  older  and  meet  with  many  people 
out  in  the  world,  they  can't  always  have  things  their 
way,  and  it  comes  very  hard  to  them  to  be  opposed 
and  be  obliged  to  yield  to  others. 

"One  day  Aunt  Nancy  was  shelling  peas,  while 
sitting  on  the  broad  stone  step  at  the  door  near  her 
bed  of  camomile  and  tansy,  when,  to  coax  Mil-anda  to 
assist  her,  she  said :  '  Now  come  and  help  mother  get 


196  LEGENDS  OF  OLD  BEDFORD. 

the  peas  ready  for  dinner,  and  perhaps  you  will  find 
a  pod  with  nine  in  it,  and  then  you  can  put  it  over 
the  door,  and  the  first  boy  who  comes  in  under  it  will 
be  your  husband.' 

"With  all  Aunt  Nancy's  good  sense,  she  had  a  few 
foolish  notions,  and  this  was  not  the  least.  Little 
Miranda  was  easily  persuaded  to  aid  her  mother  by 
that  talk. 

'^She  counted  and  counted,  and  did  find  the  charmed 
number.  It  was  put  over  the  door,  and  the  petted  and 
indulged  Miranda  was  continually  reminded  of  the 
foolish  whim  until  her  restless  mind  was  fully  per- 
suaded that  the  first  young  man  who  should  enter  that 
door  was  to  be  her  husband. 

"  In  those  days  it  was  the  prevailing  custom  for  the 
minister  and  doctor  of  the  town  to  go  about  making 
calls  without  any  particular  invitation,  and  to  stop  to 
tea  was  in  the  regular  order  of  custom.  So  one  pleas- 
ant afternoon,  while  the  peas  were  still  hanging,  good 
Dr.  Prentiss  drove  up  the  lane,  having  come  from  the 
village  with  the  express  purpose  of  drinking  tea  with 
Uncle  John  and  Aunt  Nancy.  As  his  good  wife  was 
obliged  to  attend  to  other  duties  that  appeared  just 
as  the  horse  and  chaise  came  around  to  the  door,  he 
took  his  only  son.  While  Paul,  Miranda's  brother, 
put  the  doctor's  white  horse  in  the  empty  stall,  he 
and  his  son  walked  right  into  the  living-room,  in  the 
place  of  going  to  the  front  door.  Thus  Samuel  Pren- 
tiss was  the  first  young  man  who  passed  under  the 
peas. 

"Little  Miranda's  eyes  sparked,  for  that,  she 
thought,  was  fine,  and  Aunt  Nancy  was  rather  pleased, 
and  did  not  a  little  to  impress  the  giddy  girl  with  the 
idea  that  Samuel  was  to  be  her  husband,  and  in  fact 


A    POD    OF    NINE    PEAS.  197 

went  so  far  as  to  playfully  call  her  Mrs.  Prestiss,  and 
occasionally  add,  '  One  of  the  best  families  in  all  the 
town,  and  well  off,  too,  and  Samuel  is  the  only  son.' 
Aunt  Nancy  succeeded  in  convincing  Uncle  John  that 
the  plan  was  a  good  one,  and  that  the  fates  had  de- 
cided it,  while  he  declared  that  she  was  a  '  notional 
woman,'  but  fell  in  with  the  notion.  A  singing-school 
during  the  following  winter  was  looked  upon  as  the 
opportunity  for  carrying  out  the  plan.  Miranda  at- 
tended the  school,  and  was  entertained  by  the  doctor's 
good  wife  when  the  weather  was  not  suitable  for  her 
to  go  the  long  distance  home.  The  result  of  it  all 
was  that  Samuel  and  Miranda  were  married  when  in 
their  '  teens,'  knowing  but  little  of  the  world. 

"  The  parents  were  pleased  on  both  sides,  and  others 
thought  it  was  a  fine  thing  to  have  two  of  the  first 
f&milies  of  the  town  united  by  the  marriage  of  their 
children.  Few  girls  had  a  better  setting  out  than 
Miranda,  —  a  good  stock  of  furniture  and  fine  clothes ; 
besides.  Uncle  John  gave  her  a  cow  and  two  sheep, 
and,  as  he  said,  gave  them  a  good  start  in  life.  But 
neither  of  them  knew  what  it  was  to  get  a  living,  and 
Samuel  had  been  the  favorite  with  his  parents  and 
indulged  in  every  whim  as  much  as  Miranda  had  been 
by  her  parents. 

,  "It  was  not  long  before  unpleasantness  arose  be- 
tween them,  which  was  followed  by  open  contention 
and  disagreement. 

"Samuel  found  other  places  more  attractive  than 
his  home,  and  but  few  years  passed  before  Miranda 
went  home  to  her  parents  and  Samuel  was  left  on  the 
road  to  ruin.  They  had  one  child,  a  source  of  much 
contention. 

"Miranda  now,  more  often  than  before,  gave  way 


198  LEGENDS  OF  OLD  BEDFOKD. 

to  her  unfortunate  disposition,  but,  being  the  only 
child  at  home,  succeeded  in  passing  the  time  in  aiding 
her  parents,  who  were  fast  growing  old,  and  did  not 
oppose  her.  Soon  Uncle  John  died.  Miranda  had 
her  portion  of  the  property,  which  was  not  a  trifle, 
and  stayed  with  her  mother  until,  with  the  advice  of 
ever-ready  Mrs.  Meddlesome,  Aunt  Nancy  thought 
she  could  get  along  alone,  and  Miranda  made  a  home 
for  herself  in  another  town. 

"  Aunt  Nancy  died  at  a  good  old  age.  Another 
division  of  property  gave  Miranda  another  start.  So, 
in  living  about,  visiting  cousins,  who  were  too  often 
more  pleased  to  see  her  go  than  come,  and  often  times 
doing  good,  she  passed  some  years  in  the  neighboring 

town  of  B ,  until  a  complaint  from  the  ^ithorities 

of  that  place  was  entered  in  this  her  native  town,  and 
she  was  brought  to  the  poorhouse,  a  physical  wreck 
and  penniless,  where,  after  twenty  years  of  unhappy 
life,  she  died  at  the  age  of  eighty  years,  with  but  few 
relatives  or  friends,  and  none  who  could  follow  her  to 
her  grave.  Had  she  died  before  the  pod  of  nine  peas 
was  put  over  that  door,  this  whole  town  would  have 
been  as  one  mourner,  but,  as  you  saw  the  other  day^ 
two  carriages  held  the  company,  and  there  was  not 
one  person  to  shed  a  tear  of  regret.  I  will  not  pre- 
sume to  say  who  was  responsible  in  the  sight  of  God 
for  the  wreck  of  what  early  promised  to  be  a  happy 
life,  but  trust  that  this  story,  never  before  told,  will 
be  of  profit  to  you  and  others  who  may  follow  you." 


D  0  N  Y. 


>FTEll  the  foregoing  Legends  had  passed 
through  the  press,  there  was  received  from 
a  reader  of  the  History  of  Bedford  the  fol- 
lowing question : 

"Why  was  Bedford  called  Dony  ?" 

The  answer  is  from  the  authority  credited  with  the 
Legends.  The  early  settlers,  weary  from  their  long 
journey  to  attend  the  service  of  worship,  resolved  to 
secure  the  incorporation  of  a  new  town,  which  in- 
volved the  erection  of  a  meeting  house  and  the  orga- 
nization of  a  new  church. 

They  were  opposed  by  the  people  to  the  northward, 
but  were  more  successful  in  their  appeals  in  other 
directions. 

The  people  to  the  southward  not  only  gave  cheerful 
assent,  but  they  made  gifts  of  money  towards  defray- 
ing the  expenses  of  organization. 

The  agitators  of  the  new  town  had  sent  out  a  cry 
for  help  and  been  successful,  as  were  the  inhabitants 
of  Macedonia  when  they  sought  aid  from  Paul  the 
apostle. 

The  pious  zeal  of  some  led  them  to  select  the  name 
Macedonia  for  the  new  town.  In  failing  to  carry 
their  point  they  manifested  their  gratitude  for  assist- 
ance by  introducing  the  name  Dony,  forming  the 
word  by  adding  the  coloquial  ending  y  to  the  root  of 
the  Latin  word  Dom)^  to  give. 


UNIVERSITY  OF  CALIFORNIA  LIBRARY 
BERKELEY 

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LD  21-100w^ll,'49(B7146sl6)476 


■s?  .^(^jf^^^m^^ 


